South Africa's iron ore exports increase by 6.8% in June

South Africa's iron ore exports increased by 6.8% on a yearly basis to 4,772,250 tons in June 2024. However, despite this positive development, June 2024 exports decreased by 5.5% compared to May 2024.

South Africa remains a major player in the world iron ore market. Among the country's largest importers are Asian countries such as China, India and Japan. China ranked first with 15,899,694 tons of iron ore imports in January-June 2024, followed by the Netherlands in second place with 4,191,464 tons. Mozambique with 3,370,668 tons of imported iron ore followed by Japan with 2,288,677 tons. However, increasing competition and volatile market conditions may require South Africa to take strategic steps to sustain its exports. Moreover, whether the decrease in June will continue or not will become clearer in the coming months.

The South African government and the iron ore sector are aiming to accelerate infrastructure investments and explore new markets to boost export performance. In the coming period, global economic conditions as well as South Africa's strategic moves will shape the future of the country's iron ore exports.

Countries to which South Africa exports iron ore;