Chinese Iron Ore, Soyabean and Coal Imports in 3q

Coal, Grain, Iron Ore

Combined Chinese imports of iron ore, soyabeans and coal surged to a quarterly record of 416.5 Mt in the 3q20, rising 8.8 Mt year-on-year, customs data show.

Growth was led by strong iron ore receipts, which hit the second-highest level on record at 108.5 Mt in September after peaking in July and totalled 321.6 Mt in the 3q20. This brought imports over the first nine months of 2020 up 83.0 Mt to 868.7 Mt.

Soyabean imports gained 3.2 Mt to a record 29.5 Mt in the 3q20, with January-September receipts up 9.9 Mt to 74.5 Mt.

By contrast the country’s coal imports (including lignite) shed 30.7 Mt to 65.4 Mt in July-September, while year-to-date receipts dropped to 239.6 Mt from 250.6 Mt.