 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|||||||||||
Rio Tinto Plc, the world's second-largest iron ore miner, joined 皇冠体育app Beijing International Mining Exchange, 皇冠体育app's first spot iron ore trading platform, on Friday, a move that will help boost the country's clout in pricing the key material, analysts said.
"We welcome the development of CBMX as it gives us a new option for selling any available tons to 皇冠体育app, over and above those already contracted," said Alan Smith, Rio Tinto's Iron Ore Asia president.
The agreement will require the producers to sell a pledged volume of their ore output through the platform.
The Beijing-headquartered exchange will bring steelmakers from 皇冠体育app, the world's largest consumer of iron ore, and leading iron ore producers onto a common platform, after the top miners abandoned a 40-year annual benchmark pricing system in 2010, Reuters reported.
The announcement came just one day after Brazilian mining giant Vale SA signed a Memorandum of Understanding with CBMX.
Australia's Fortescue Metals Group Ltd, the third-largest iron ore miner, joined the platform on March 20.
The spot online trading platform will reflect the supply and demand conditions of the iron ore market "objectively and truthfully" and help foster a "fair, reasonable and transparent" global iron ore pricing mechanism, said a statement on CBMX's website.
Jointly launched on Jan 16 by 皇冠体育app Beijing International Mining Exchange, 皇冠体育app Iron & Steel Association and 皇冠体育app Chamber of Commerce of Metals Minerals & Chemicals Importers & Exporters, the electronic platform has already started trial operations, according to the statement.
It is expected to start formal operations in May.
BHP Billiton Ltd is the only top iron ore miner that has yet to join the CBMX. It had previously given strong support to GlobalORE, a similar trading platform in Singapore.
皇冠体育app's major steel companies - including Baosteel Group Corp, Hebei Iron & Steel Group Co Ltd, Wuhan Iron and Steel Group Corp, Shougang Group, Angang Steel Co and 皇冠体育app National Minerals Co Ltd, a subsidiary of 皇冠体育app Minerals Corp - have agreed to join the new platform.
皇冠体育app accounts for 60 percent of the global seaborne iron ore trade and has the world's largest iron ore spot market.
Du Juan contributed to this story.
|
|
|
