Port Hedland Iron Ore Exports to China Soar in August

SYDNEY, Sept 3 (Reuters) – Iron ore exports to China from Australia’s Port Hedland rose 15 p.c to 33.9 million tonnes in August from July, as BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group operated at most manufacturing charges regardless of a softening market, figures launched on Thursday confirmed.

The August enhance over July despatched whole iron ore exports from the world’s greatest iron ore export terminal to 39.2 million tonnes in August, a file for a single month and an 11 p.c rise over July.

Iron ore in recent times has changed coal as Australia’s greatest supply of overseas revenue, regardless of the worth plunging as little as $44.10 a tonne in July – lower than half of the worth a 12 months earlier. Iron ore has since rebounded to face at $55.80 a tonne. <.IO62-CNI=SI>

Port Hedland, which handles a few fifth of the world’s seaborne iron ore commerce, is utilized by BHP and Fortescue, the lion’s share of shipments headed for Chinese metal mills.

BHP is lifting output by 6 p.c to 247 million tonnes by subsequent July, whereas Fortescue is operating at an annual price of round 165 million tonnes, making them the third and fourth highest producers worldwide after Vale and Rio Tinto . (Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Anand Basu)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015.