Coking coal up nearly 6 percent, rebar climbs over 5 percent
China's factory prices rise at quickest pace since 2011
Prices of steel and its raw materials in China soared by at least 5 percent each to their strongest level in years on Wednesday, backed by a sustained rally in coal and signs of a pickup in the world's No. 2 economy.
China's factory prices rose 1.2 percent year on year in October, the fastest pace since December 2011, data showed.
With producer prices pulling out of nearly five years of deflation and the economy showing broad signs of stabilisation, pressure on Beijing to support growth has eased, with the policy focus now on controlling asset bubbles and other risks.
The increase in China's producer prices "indicates we have a really firm industry and there's demand", said Wang Di, analyst at CRU consultancy in Beijing.
The data, along with sustained gains in coal prices still driven by a shortage of supply in China, helped spur the rally in futures, said Wang.
Iron ore for January delivery on the Dalian Commodity Exchange DCIOcv1 surged by the 6 percent exchange-set ceiling to close at 551.50 yuan ($81) a tonne, the highest since May 2014.
On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, construction steel product rebar SRBcv1 rose 5.3 percent to end at 3,015 yuan per tonne, after hitting 3,030 yuan earlier, its strongest since August 2014.
"Steel prices keep going up and distributors are in a high mood to restock at the moment," said Wang.
The strength in steel prices spurred appetite for iron ore, lifting the spot 62-percent grade benchmark <.IO62-CNI=SI> by 1.5 percent to $67.80 a tonne on Tuesday, its loftiest since April 21, according to The Steel Index.
"High-grade imported ores continue to attract a premium in the market as buyers look to minimise their exposure to high-cost coking coal," Commonwealth Bank of Australia analyst Vivek Dhar said in a note.
Dalian coking coal for January delivery DJMcv1 touched a record high of 1,588.50 yuan a tonne, before closing at 1,559 yuan, up 5.7 percent.
Coke DCJcv1, made from coking coal, finished 7.4 percent higher at 2,153 yuan per tonne, after peaking at 2,177.50 yuan, the highest since February 2013.
Beijing's big push to curb overcapacity in coal has shuttered many mines across the country, limiting supply available to domestic consumers and fuelling a rally this year.
($1 = 6.7740 Chinese yuan)
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