Iron ore miners buoyed by futures rally
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The news: Iron ore miners were among the biggest gainers on the ASX 200 by afternoon trade as the futures index price for the key steel-making input continued to rally amid unverified reports of a possible high-level Chinese government meeting to support the property sector.
The numbers: At 12:19pm AEST iron ore and lithium miner Mineral Resources’ share price had lifted 7.4% to $27.39 while Champion Iron shares had lifted 3.4% to $4.60.
Diversified miners Fortescue (up 3.8% to $17.13), BHP (up 2.9% to $39.41) and Rio Tinto (up 2.4% to $111.19) had also seen large gains.
The iron ore index futures price on the Singapore exchange had lifted 0.8% to USD99.75 ($151.48), a level not seen since May, and was up 4.7% since close on 7 July.
The context: Bloomberg reported that some Chinese property shares posted the highest gains in nine months following unverified social media reports of a possible high-level meeting that could be similar to the Central Urban Work Conference in 2015.
The 2015 conference resulted in a slew of support measures targeted at redeveloping shanty towns and constructing new homes.
China is the world’s largest steel consumer with its construction sector accounting for a large proportion of the country’s consumption.
The chief executives of BHP Australia, Rio Tinto Australia and Fortescue are part of a broader trade delegation travelling to China next week. It is organised by the Business Council of Australia which confirmed it will meet with Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday.
