BHP suspending China portside iron ore sales until April 22 for system upgrade

The world’s third-largest iron ore producer BHP Group will temporarily suspend portside sales in China for 11 days due to an internal system upgrade, a company spokesperson told Reuters.

“A planned system upgrade will take place in mid-April 2024. BHP will suspend portside sales between April 12 and April 22, both dates inclusive,” the spokesperson said.

“During this period, customers can continue to collect material at the place of delivery in accordance with the relevant cargo release notice, transaction confirmation and MSA,” the spokesperson added.

Clients had received notification from BHP earlier and had made preparations in advance, several industry sources told Reuters.

Industry sources said they did not expect much impact, noting that portside stocks are at high levels.

Iron ore prices in top consumer China have shown signs of rebounding after a public holiday in early April on improved demand.

Futures prices of the most active contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange climbed by over 13% since April 1 while seaborne prices of the 62% Fe iron ore rallied by over 10% to $112.5 a ton on Friday, the highest since March 8, data from consultancy Steelhome showed. 

https://www.mining.com/web/bhp-suspending-china-portside-iron-ore-sales-until-april-22-for-system-upgrade/