Iron ore price cut of 82% 'unlikely'

SHANGHAI: The negotiation between China and the three iron ore giants, namely BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Vale, is set to bring down the iron ore price from its 2008 peak, but China's goal of an 82 percent price cut would be a mission impossible, analysts said.

China is asking for a price cut of up to 82 percent, as "the steel prices have fallen to the 1994 level", Shan Shanghua, secretary-general of China Iron and Steel Association, was quoted as saying by Securities Daily yesterday.

Zou Jian, chairman of the China Metallurgical Mining Enterprise Association, agreed on a price cut. "But it will be very difficult to realize such an aggressive request," he said.