China forces iron importers to join trading platform

Chinese regulators will mandate that iron ore traders use a domestic trading platform in order to receive a license, an effort by Beijing to take more control over prices for the metal, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources. The new rules dictate that traders and steel mills applying for a license must trade more than 551,155 tons of iron on the China Beijing International Mining Exchange (CBMX). The move could boost liquidity at CBMX, which launched its physical trading platform last year. Forcing importers onto the exchange reverses Beijing’s acceptance of an industry-wide shift to spot pricing in 2010 after 40 years of yearly set prices.