China has expanded its restrictions on iron ore supplies from Australian miner BHP, escalating a long-running contract dispute between the miner and China's state-owned iron ore trading arm China Mineral Resources Group (CMRG), according to a Reuters report.
Last November, CMRG ordered Chinese steel mills and traders to stop purchasing cargoes of BHP's second iron ore product. Group, particularly low-grade "Jinbao fines", following an earlier ban from September 2025 that targeted BHP's "Jimblebar fines", as previously reported SteelOrbis.
This time, CMRG has instructed domestic steel mills and traders to stop accepting supplies of Newman fines, a widely traded iron ore BHP product stored at Chinese ports starting next week. Existing cargoes can still be collected during a limited transition period of around five working days.
The measures could impact a significant proportion of BHP's shipments to China if it expands further, SteelOrbis understands.
The tightened restrictions have sparked a rush among traders to sell BHP cargo already stored at Chinese ports, amid fears that more could soon be banned products.
Contract talks remain unresolved
The restrictions come as negotiations continue over long-term supply terms between BHP and CMRG, which controls a large share of China's iron ore imports. The outcome of the negotiations will determine whether restrictions remain
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