Bloomberg reported that China’s state-run iron ore buyer, China Mineral Resources Group (CMRG), instructed steelmakers and traders to halt new dollar-denominated purchases from BHP. The claim hit markets just as China began its October 1–8 holiday.
But Mysteel, a Chinese commodity pricing firm cited by the Australian Financial Review, disputed the report, saying it had “verified through relevant channels and confirmed that this rumour is not true.” Mysteel added that no notice had been received by mills and that the information did not come from the China Iron and Steel Association.
The conflicting signals underscore the sensitivity around China’s efforts to exert more control over iron ore pricing and highlight the challenges for global miners like BHP, whose shares dipped earlier this week after Bloomberg’s initial report.
