China Ore Imports From Brazil, India Fall Sharply in 2010.

BEIJING  - Chinese imports of iron ore from Brazil and India fell sharply during 2010, while Australian shipments inched up slightly over the year, according to data issued by customs on Friday.

Shipments from India fell 9.98 percent to 96.59 million tonnes in 2010, and Brazilian deliveries declined 9.09 percent to 130.86 million tonnes compared to a year earlier.

Imports from Australia reached 265.33 million tonnes, up 1.36 percent compared to 2009.

China, stung by its dependence on the three dominant global supplier countries, vowed early last year to diversify its sources of iron ore.

Australia, Brazil and India provided 79.7 percent of China's total iron ore imports over 2010, down from 81.5 percent in 2009 -- and much of the gap was met by increasing shipments from countries such as Iran, Ukraine and Venezuela.

For a table showing China's iron ore imports in December and the whole of 2010 by country of origin, click [ID:nEAP001311].

But analysts have said that the decline should be attributed not to Chinese policy, but to an export ban in India's Karnataka state together with supply problems in Brazil.

Total imports for 2010 reached 618.64 million tonnes, 1.43 percent lower than the previous year. (Reporting by David Stanway, Editing by Jacqueline Wong)

Source : af.reuters.com