But that other 30% does matter – and there are signs of a recovery in demand in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.
The total global volume of seaborne iron ore discharged at ports in January was 134 million tonnes, according to vessel-tracking and port data compiled by Refinitiv.
This was up from 122.82 million tonnes in December and 125.18 million in November, and also some 6.5% higher than the volume for January 2020.
A RECOVERY IN JAPAN, SOUTH KOREA AND OTHER SMALLER ASIAN IMPORTERS WOULD WORK TO OFFSET ANY MODERATION IN CHINESE DEMAND
These figures do point to a recovery in the world seaborne market. And the breakdown does lend support to the view that the major buyers other than China – namely Japan, South Korea and Western Europe – are starting to pull their weight.
China’s seaborne imports of the steel-making ingredient in January were 98.79 million tonnes, meaning the rest of the world was at 35.21 million.
For the same month in 2020, imports by the world ex-China were 34.07 million tonnes, a rise of 3.3% year-on-year.
That may not seem like a massive increase, but in terms of the damage done to the global economy during the lockdowns to combat the spread of the coronavirus during much of 2020, it’s actually a solid rebound.
Japan’s iron ore imports were 7.68 million tonnes in January, up marginally from 7.64 million in December and 7.42 million in November, but down a touch from the 7.78 million in January 2020.
South Korea imported 5.98 million tonnes in January, up a smidgeon from 5.97 million in December, but down from 6.94 million in November, and also below the 6.27 million from January 2020.
Imports by Western European countries stood at 7.29 million tonnes in January. That was up from 6.64 million in December and 6.94 million in November, and only slightly below the 7.78 million from January 2020.
It’s of note that Western Europe’s imports have rebounded 53.2% from the 2020 low of 4.76 million tonnes in June.
Similarly, Japan’s January imports were 51.2% above the lowest month last year, the 5.08 million tonnes from June, and South Korea’s were 19.6% stronger than the worst month in 2020, the 5 million tonnes from February.