China imported 181 million tonnes of iron ore for the January/February 2022 period, roughly equaling volume from the same period the previous year according to data released by the country’s General Administration of Customs.
Total year-on-year spend for the two months was down 28% to just over $18.95 billion US dollars on softening prices.
Copper ore and concentrates
Chinese imports of copper ore and concentrates increased by 10.2% year-on-year, hitting 4.175 million tonnes.
Spend for the two months was up by 30.6%, thanks to strengthening prices for the red metal.
Coal and lignite
January-February coal and lignite imports declined by nearly 14% from the previous year to 35.4 million tonnes, despite spend skyrocketing by 124%.
Rare Earths
Rare Earth imports were reported for the first time during the January-February 2022 period, with the country purchasing 16,828 tonnes at a total price of USD $172.4 million.
Australian exports to China
Total Australian exports to China amounted to 21.53 billion US dollars for January-February, representing a trade surplus of just under 9.59 billion dollars.
The figure represented a modest increase from 20.5 billion dollars during the same period in 2021.
