Japan, Korea may accept 30-35% price drop in iron ore

Japan, Korea may accept 30-35% price drop in iron ore

Korea’s Posco and Japan’s Nippon Steel may only accept a 30-35 percent price drop in the iron ore benchmark price during the period 2009-10. They are likely to reach a final agreement later this month.

Last month, Posco insisted that the benchmark iron ore price should be at least 50 percent lower than it was in 2008-09, but the miners will only accept a drop of less than 20 percent as a concession.

However, China Iron and Steel Association (CISA) hopes that iron ore prices will return to 2007 levels, and that even if Korea and Japan accept a 30-35 percent price decline, China will not ‘follow the crowd’.

By Yieh Corp