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IJzerertsprijzen kelderen infographic
Graphic charts iron ore prices over the years.
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De gloriedagen van de ijzerertsexport zijn voorbij

By Ninian Carter

August 19, 2024 - The bonanza that saw a decades-long rise in iron ore prices is all but over, as China shies away from heavy investment and housing construction and pivots towards a service economy.

Since China’s industrialisation boom in the early 2000s, commodities such as oil and coal have surged in value by hundreds of percent.

But iron ore has been by far the biggest winner, rising by 937% since the mid-1990s – more than any other major commodity.

Now, the bonanza is over following China’s shift towards a service economy – away from heavy investment and housing construction. China inflated the boom and now it’s taking it down again.

As a result, iron ore, which is smelted to make steel, has fallen below $100 a tonne (down 55% from its 2021 all-time high of almost $220 a tonne) – still way higher than the 1980-2000 average price of $12.50 per tonne.

At current prices, the top mining behemoths can still turn a profit – for example, it costs Rio Tinto about $21 a tonne to excavate iron ore from the Pilbara region of Western Australia. But if prices fall towards $50 a tonne, the fortunes of Rio and other big producers like Vale, BHP, Fortescue, and Anglo American could suffer.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 19/08/2024; STORY: Graphic News
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