Australia Lifts 2013 Iron Ore Price Forecast on China Demand

Australia, the world’s biggest iron ore exporter, raised its price estimate for next year on expectation that infrastructure projects and stimulus spending by China, the world’s biggest buyer, will boost demand.

Prices will average $106 a metric ton in 2013, compared with a September estimate of $101 a ton, the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics said in a report on 12 December. Prices are set to average $128 a ton in 2012 from $126 a ton forecast in September, the Canberra-based bureau said. Australia may ship 481 million tons in 2012 and 543 million tons in 2013, from 483 million tons and 528 million tons predicted in September, it said.

Iron ore climbed on 11 December to the highest price in more than four months on signs China will rebound after a seven- quarter slowdown. Industrial output and retail sales rose faster than economists estimated, data showed Dec. 9, bolstering prospects for a sustained pickup. China imported 65.78 million tons of the ore last month, the customs bureau said Dec. 10, the second-highest level after a record 68.97 million tons in January 2011.