So, do you still foresee growth, or is this one just going to sit for a while?

Deutsche Bank predicts that the contractual price agreed by the top three iron ore suppliers with steelmakers for the year of 2010 is likely to reach USD 101 per tonne, 35% higher than the benchmark price of 2009.

Deutsche Bank believes that the world iron ore supply will be unable to meet the demand this year. The supply and demand will respectively reach 1.855 billion tonnes and 1.876 billion tonnes.

Currently, more than 50% of China needed iron ores are supplied through imports. The China Customs discloses that the country imported iron sands and concentrates of 62.16 million tonnes in December 2009 jumping over 80% from a year earlier. The figure reached 628 million tonnes in the full year, leaping 41.6%.

Because of global economic recovery and bulk commodity markup, the prices of iron ores and coking coals have both surged since the beginning of 2010. On January 8th India spot price for iron ores with a tenor of 63% rose to USD 134 per tonne.

From: Steel Guru

http://steelguru.com/news/raw_material_news/newsid/MTI5MTky/title/Opposition_growing_to_iron_ore_JVs_in_Australia

FT reported that by combining their iron ore operations in north western Australia, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton have crafted a deal that could potentially become one of the most lucrative seen in the mining industry. But rising opposition from steel producers promises to sharpen regulatory scrutiny this year, making the agreement’s approval anything but certain.”