The pushmi-pullyu was reputedly rare. But plenty of commodity traders are going both ways at once, just like the animal from The Story of Doctor Dolittle. Consider the performance of commodity markets this year — energy has soared, yet most industrial metals and lumber have tumbled.
Iron ore prices — which fell 5 per cent on Monday — are following the same downward trajectory, as demand from Chinese steel producers stumbles. That is bad news for top producers such as Rio Tinto and BHP.
A global economic slowdown approaches. All eyes are on the Federal Reserve’s attempts to slow US growth. Yet the other industrial Goliath, China, has shown only faltering signs of recovery from persistent Covid-19 shutdowns. Its voracious economy usually consumes about half of global industrial metal supply and more than 70 per cent of the world’s iron ore. A weak domestic steel market hints of what to expect for China’s economy.