Iron ore extends losing streak on Sino-US trade tensions

By Michele Pek

SINGAPORE, March 4 (Reuters) - Dalian iron ore futures slid for a seventh consecutive session on Tuesday as fresh U.S. tariffs on top consumer China kicked in, heightening trade tensions.

The most-traded May iron ore contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) DCIOcv1 closed down 1.14% at 781 yuan ($107.26) a metric ton.

The benchmark April iron ore SZZFJ5 on the Singapore Exchange ticked up 0.37% to $100.25 a ton as of 0705 GMT, though prices slid to $99.35 earlier in the session, the lowest since January 15.

Prices fell following reports that Chinese steel mills are reducing production to ease pollution levels ahead of the annual National People's Congress (NPC) meeting, said ING analysts.

Trade tensions with the U.S. are also affecting the outlook for exports, ING added.

U.S. President Donald Trump's doubling of duties on Chinese goods to 20% kicked in, launching a new trade conflict. Beijing retaliated with 10%-15% hikes to import levies covering a range of American agricultural and food products, while placing 25 U.S. firms under export and investment restrictions.

As China braces for higher U.S. tariffs, policymakers face increased pressure to unveil consumer-focused policies with a longer-term impact at the NPC meeting on March 5.

Tariff tensions also caused shares of Australian miners to slide, further dampening sentiment. China is one of Australia's key trading partners.

Still, China's steel market is expected to gain upward momentum from consumption recovery among steel end-users this month, said Chinese consultancy Mysteel.

Market sentiment may be underpinned by expectations of more policy stimulus, Mysteel added.

Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE declined, with coking coal DJMcv1 and coke DCJcv1 down 1.71% and 1.74%, respectively.

Most steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost ground. Rebar SRBcv1 fell 1.11%, hot-rolled coil SHHCcv1 shed nearly 0.8%, wire rod SWRcv1 dipped 0.9% while stainless steel SHSScv1 was up 0.04%.

($1 = 7.2816 Chinese yuan)