Aussie commodity’s ‘remarkable’ surge

BHP shares finished at $49.64 on Friday as it hit its new, all-time record high ($49.93) and nears the never-before achieved $50 barrier – finishing the week up 3.35 per cent. On Thursday, Sky News business analyst Edward Boyd noted that iron ore prices were bouncing back to their highest levels in six months.“Go back to November last year, and iron ore was at $82 USD a tonne so it has gained significant value in just a few months,” he said. The iron ore spot price finished the week at $124 USD per tonne.Speculators say the commodity continues to rally due to new market confidence brought on by China’s reopening, which they expect will result in higher demand.The decisive day for miners and optimism surrounding China’s reopening has the ASX 200 finishing the week up 3.07 per cent. That push was also reflected in the All Ordinaries, up 3.16 per centOther miners dealing in the commodity posted gains for the week, including Rio Tinto, which jumped 1.74 per cent (122.29 per cent)Fortescue Metals Group tapered off on Friday but managed to rise a weekly gain of 4.20 per cent. Morgan Stanley said iron ore was on a “remarkable run” in a note to investors.“This rally appears mostly forward looking on China reopening optimism, as underlying supply-demand fundamentals haven’t significantly tightened up,” the company’s commodities strategist Marius van Straaten said.It forecasts a “further upside in iron ore prices” with an average price of $US140 per tonne for the second quarter of 2023.Observers have attributed the rally to China’s faster-than-expected reopening off the back of stringent Covid-19 restrictions, which had severely impacted trade with the primary importer. Via news.com.au — Australia’s leading news site https://www.news.com.au