Reuters reported that iron ore rallied for a 14th consecutive day in its longest winning streak ever, reflecting sustained buying from Chinese steel mills although the rapid rebound from last month's slump is spurring caution with steel prices not recovering as fast.

Chinese steel mills began replenishing their inventories of the steelmaking raw material after spot iron ore prices fell to a 22 month low below USD 117 a tonne in late October. While iron ore prices have surged more than 26% since then, China steel futures have largely been steady.

Because China's steel production cuts have been marginal, the steep drop in iron ore prices last month drew mills back to the market. But current steel prices suggest demand in top consumer China remains weak, cutting the need for more of the raw material.

According to the Steel Index, iron ore with 62% iron content rose 0.3% to USD 147.60 a tonne on Thursday, the highest since October. It was up 7.2% for the week so far, its third weekly gain in a row.

Rising more than 26% over the past 14 sessions, iron ore is up nearly 25% so far this month, rebounding quickly from a 31% slide in October.

Chinese industry consultancy Mysteel showed that inventories of imported iron ore at major Chinese ports hit a record 98.09 million tonnes this week, up 1.9% from the previous week, figures.

(Sourced from Thomson Reuters)