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In May 2024, iron ore was valued at approximately *** U.S. dollars per dry metric ton unit (dmtu), as compared to *** U.S. dollars per dmtu in the same month of the previous year. 

Iron ore prices and production

Iron ore refers to the minerals and rocks from which metallic iron is economically viable to extract. Pig iron, which is one of the raw materials used in steel production, is derived from iron ore. The price of iron ore has fluctuated a great deal over the last twenty years. In 2003, one dmtu of iron ore cost ** U.S. dollars, and increased to a high of *** U.S. dollars per dmtu in 2011. The price saw dramatic drops in the past decade, from * U.S. dollars per dry metric ton unit in March 2013 to U.S. dollars per dmtu in December 2015. Since then, the price has increased gradually to * U.S. dollars per dmtu as of July 2021, before dropping sharply in August 2021.

Iron ore producers

Overall, the global production of iron ore did not decrease when the prices dropped. In fact, an increase in production among several of the world's largest iron ore producing countries was observed in the past five years. Australia produced *** million metric tons of iron ore in 2023. China is also among the world's largest iron ore producers, though its production is calculated differently than in other countries. Based primarily on the production of raw ore rather than usable ore, China produced an estimated *** million metric tons in 2023.