According to Chinese customs authorities, iron ore imports for September came in at 99.7 MMT, up 3.6% MOM and 4.3% YOY, taking the YTD total to 823.1 MMT, which is down 2.4% compared to 2021 and 5.2% compared to 2020 but slightly below the 5-year average. Despite being down YTD, the latest data point indicates a positive momentum for iron ore imports with a third consecutive MOM increase. Furthermore, coal imports came in at 33 MMT for September and yielded an increase of 12% MOM and a marginal increase of 0.5% YOY, but still fall short YTD with a decrease 12.9% YOY.

Additionally, Chinese steel production climbed above the 5-year average of 80.6 MMT as the National Bureau of Statistics reported production of 87.7 MMT for September, up 4.5% MOM and 20.3% YOY, for a 3.1% decline YTD compared to last year. The raw material intensive pig iron production was 73.9 MMT for September, up 3.6% MOM and 13.4% YOY, and YTD now stands 1.4% above last year.

However, Chinese coal production followed suit for the production statistics with a MOM growth of 4.4%, a YOY growth of 15.7%, and now stands 14.9% above the same period last year. Overall, the latest data point indicates an uptick in both production and import levels and provides some support for the dry bulk segment despite the looming macroeconomic uncertainty.