China's iron ore imports recorded a historical high in 2024 while finished steel exports also reached near-record levels, Kallanish notes.

Its December iron ore import volumes rose 10.5% month-on-month to 112.5 million tonnes, which took annual imports to more than 1.2 billion tonnes, up 4.9% on-year.

Increased iron ore supplies from Ukraine and India led to the full-year growth, with easing logistical issues in the Black Sea helping Ukraine's exports to China to grow. 

The total import amount of iron ore in 2024 however slipped 2.5% y-o-y to $135.6 billion, partially stemming from higher low-grade iron ore demand when steelmaking margins fell.

Meanwhile, China’s finished steel exports exceeded 110mt in 2024 while imports reached a new low. Exports rebounded by 4.8% m-o-m to 9.7mt and 25.9% y-o-y in December. This took 2024 exports to more than 110.7mt, up 22.7% y-o-y. This is just below the all-time high of 112.4mt recorded in 2015. The export revenue however meanwhile fell 1.1% y-o-y amid the steel price downtrend.

Its annual finished steel imports dropped to a new low of 6.8mt, down 10.9% y-o-y, although December’s exports rebounded 31.3% m-o-m to 621,000t.