Iron ore price tops $200 amid further deterioration of China-Australia relations

Iron ore prices jumped to a fresh high on Thursday after China “indefinitely” suspended all activity under a China-Australia Strategic Economic Dialogue, in the latest setback to the strained relations between Beijing and Canberra.

Benchmark 62% Fe fines imported into Northern China (CFR Qingdao) hit a new high on Thursday, changing hands for $201.88 a tonne, up 4.85% from the previous day, according to Fastmarkets MB. The high-grade Brazilian index (65% Fe fines) also advanced to a record high of $234.70 a tonne.

“Recently, some Australian Commonwealth Government officials launched a series of measures to disrupt the normal exchanges and cooperation between China and

Australia out of Cold War mindset and ideological discrimination,” China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said in a statement on the decision.
Bilateral ties were strained in 2018 when Australia became the first country to publicly ban Chinese tech giant Huawei from its 5G network. Relations worsened last year when Australia called for an independent investigation into the origins of the novel coronavirus, prompting trade reprisals from China.