China imported 92.5 million tonnes of iron ore for the month of May 2022, up over 7.5% on the previous month according to data released by the country’s General Administration of Customs.
Total spend for the metal was up 11% to over $12.8 billion US dollars on strengthening prices.
Despite this, May saw a decline in spend of just over 17.7% from the previous year, with volume up by over 3%.
Copper ore and concentrates
Chinese imports of copper ore and concentrates rose by 16.2% in May to 2.2 million tonnes, with spend increasing by nearly 14.7%.
Year-on-year volume for the base metal was up by 12.5%, accompanied by a 20.7% increase in spend compared to May 2021 on robust prices.
Coal and lignite
May coal and lignite imports fell by 12.7% from April to 20.5 million tonnes, with spend also decreasing by nearly 8.2%.
Year-on-year figures saw a more modest 2.3% decline in tonnage, despite spend increasing by over 87.8% compared to May 2021.
Rare Earths
Rare earth imports declined by over 35% during May, with spend also down by 19.2%.
Australian exports to China
Total Australian exports to China amounted to 12.9 billion US dollars in May, representing a trade surplus of just over 7 billion dollars.
The figure increased from 10.98 billion dollars in April, despite representing a 5.1% year-on-year decline from May 2021.
