2010-09-07 14:23

The world's top three iron ore miners are in talks with China Iron & Steel Association in a bid to set a monthly iron ore pricing scheme, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing a senior management from China's largest metal trader.

The miners' hopes to move the current quarterly pricing to monthly would increase the risks for importers unable to lock in purchasing prices, said Feng Guiquan,vice president of China Minmetals Corp.

The three big iron ore miners, Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton and Vale abolished annual iron ore benchmark prices, and turned to a more flexible index-based pricing scheme based on quarterly agreements this year. The three account for three-quarters of global iron ore trade, according to Bloomberg.

Feng told Reuters that he hoped the annual iron ore pricing mechanism would continue as long as possible, as it would be convenient for importers in terms of logistics and transportation.

Minmetals imported more than 14 million metric tons of iron ore and 11 million tons of coal last year, according to Feng. It aims to supply up to 10 million tons of iron ore each year by 2015, from the current 5-6 million tons a year, Feng told Reuters Monday.