Iron Ore-Offers Tick up After India State Keeps Export Ban.

SINGAPORE Nov 22 (Reuters) - Offers to sell iron ore edged up on Monday on supply concerns after a major Indian state kept a ban on exports of the steelmaking raw material.

The Karnataka High Court on Friday upheld an order banning shipments of iron ore from the southern Indian state, extending a measure that has been in place since July and has forced many mines to close.

Karnataka accounts for around a quarter of annual iron ore exports from India, the world's third-largest supplier that ships about half of its yearly output of more than 200 million tonnes.

"The decision will keep the seaborne iron ore market tight and is likely to see spot prices supported over coming months," Commonwealth Bank of Australia said in a note.

Indian ore with 63.5 percent iron content was offered at $164 a tonne, cost and freight in China, said Chinese consultancy Mysteel, up from a low of $163 on Friday.

Anticipating further price rises, iron ore forward swaps climbed on Friday, with the Singapore Exchange-cleared December contract gaining $1.30 to $160.50 a tonne and the January contract adding 55 cents to $157.45 a tonne.

But China's move to lift banks' reserve requirement which could cut lending to the construction sector and dent demand for steel, and consequently iron ore, may help offset any impact from tighter Indian supplies.

The People's Bank of China, fighting inflation that is running at a two-year high, said the measure was intended "to strengthen liquidity management and appropriately control money and credit issuance".

The Steel Index iron ore benchmark .IO62-CNI=SI eased 40 cents to $162.80 a tonne on Friday. (Reporting by Manolo Serapio Jr.; Editing by Himani Sarkar)

Source : af.reuters.com