According to the latest data from the General Administration of Customs of China (GACC), China's iron ore imports totaled 516.258 million tons between January and May this year, up 6.3 percent year-on-year, 1.7 percentage points slower than the growth recorded in the first four months of this year.
Although steel demand from the real estate industry was sluggish, steel demand from the infrastructure and manufacturing industries was quite high, which supported crude steel production and had a positive impact on iron ore imports.
In May alone, China's iron ore imports totaled 97.711 million, down 5.9 percent month-on-month but down 0.43 percent year-on-year.
