It is reported that China has intensified a trade squabble with Iran by labeling iron ore from the Islamic republic as substandard.

The ministry said that Iranian ore is of poor quality and imports are fraught with delivery problems.

It added that "We have received lots of complaints from domestic companies about fraud regarding iron ore imports."

The ministry claimed that product has failed to reach clients in China, and Chinese businessmen have been physically attacked during visits to Iran.

Mr Zhuhai Zhenrong, an iron ore analyst in Beijing, said that "I would consider this very similar to the crude oil import limitation by the Chinese state trading company. First, the timing is perfect, just on the heels of oil import payment concerns a few days ago. And secondly, China also used commercial risks as the main reason."

Iran is the fifth largest exporter of iron ore to China, which is also a major importer of Iranian crude. Iran produced about 3.56 million barrels of oil per day last month.

(Sourced from www.thenational.ae)