BERLIN: According to the latest import statistics published by the European Steel Association (EUROFER), the iron ore imports by Germany rose 30% during the month of May ’15. This is in comparison with the imports during same month the previous year.
The iron ore imports by the country during May ’15 totaled 3.990 million tonnes, 30.1% higher when compared with the imports during same month a year before.
The iron ore imports had totaled 3.066 million tonnes during May ‘14. Meantime, the average import prices dropped sharply from $121.6 per tonne in May ’14 to $68.2 per tonne in May this year. The total value of imports amounted to $272.290 million during May this year, significantly lower when compared with the import value of $372.915 million during the previous year.
The largest iron ore exporter to Germany during May this year was the Netherlands. Germany’s iron ore imports from the country totaled 2.028 million tonnes, accounting for more than 50% of the total imports by Germany during the period. The iron ore imports from Netherlands averaged at $66.60 per tonne during the month.
The second largest exporter to Germany during May ‘15 was Brazil with 1.041 million tonnes. In third place was Sweden with exports to Germany totaling 392,658 tonnes during the month. The other key exporters of iron ore to Germany were Canada (195,148 tonnes), South Africa (135,125 tonnes) and Ukraine (79,340 tonnes).
The cumulative iron ore imports by Germany during Jan-May ’15 increased marginally by 1.3% to total 17.869 million tonnes. The average import price has dropped by 46.30% during this period to $70.3 per tonne from $130.80 per tonne during Jan-May ’14.
The largest exporter of iron ore to Germany during the initial five month period of the year was the Netherlands with 9.680 million tonnes, followed by Brazil (3.773 million tonnes) and Sweden (2.034 million tonnes).
