Workers at BHP Group’s Port Hedland operations in Western Australia staged the first strike at the company’s Pilbara iron ore hub since 2000, after last-ditch talks failed to avert industrial action.

Iron ore was on track for the biggest weekly gain since early May as a looming strike at BHP Group’s Port Hedland terminal stoked supply concerns, even as fundamentals remain tested.

Workers at BHP Group’s Port Hedland iron ore terminal in Western Australia will stage an eight-hour strike on July 16, unions said, escalating tensions with the mining giant and potentially putting some supply at risk.

Iron ore rose after China’s state-backed buyer of the commodity expanded curbs on Australian miner Fortescue Ltd., and as a slump in prices over the last couple of months attracted buyers.

China’s state-backed iron ore buyer has expanded its curbs on Fortescue Ltd.’s iron ore to include new purchases of its Super Special Fines product and not just portside inventories, escalating its dispute with the Australian miner.

Some Fortescue Ltd. iron ore cargoes due in China next month are being held up because negotiations between the Australian miner and the country’s state-backed buyer remain deadlocked, according to people familiar with the matter.

Iron ore headed for a seventh weekly loss — the worst run since 2022 — as demand weakened seasonally and mill margins narrowed.

The Chinese steel market is navigating a prolonged weakening in demand rather than a cliff-drop collapse, as the steep decline from property is increasingly offset by manufacturing and exports, according to experts at an industry conference last week.

Iron ore sank below $100 a ton for the first time since March on signs of ample supplies just as demand in China faces headwinds.

BHP Group and Rio Tinto Plc are looking increasingly to India as the next big growth engine for global steelmaking, underscoring how the world’s biggest iron ore suppliers are preparing for a future beyond China.

The next big growth market will align closely with domestic spending on infrastructure.

The next big growth market will align closely with domestic spending on infrastructure.

The next big growth market will align closely with domestic spending on infrastructure.

Chinese coking coal futures hit the daily down limit following a report that Shaanxi authorities asked miners to maintain output, after a deadly accident in neighboring Shanxi last month raised supply and safety concerns.

Chinese coking coal rose to the highest since 2024 as the aftermath of a deadly mining accident and ongoing safety inspections kept prices elevated.

Iron ore headed for a fourth straight weekly loss on a seasonally weakening Chinese market and expectations for more shipments from Australia.

Iron ore fell to a two-month low, extending this week’s losses as rising supply and soft seasonal steel demand weighed on sentiment.

Exports from Guinea’s Simandou iron ore project surged in May, six months after the first shipment to China, marking a milestone in the ramp-up of the high-grade mine that has the potential to reshape the global market.

Exports from Guinea’s Simandou iron ore project surged in May, six months after the first shipment to China, marking a milestone in the ramp-up of the high-grade mine that has the potential to reshape the global market.

China’s state-backed iron ore buyer has instructed some steel mills to ask questions about Fortescue Ltd.’s new low-grade product as negotiations over a long-term supply contract hit a rough patch.