Iron ore exports to China from Australia's Port Hedland, which accounts for about a fifth of the globally traded market, rose by 3.5 percent in May, from April, to reach another record.
Shipments to China amounted to 29.9 million tonnes in May, up from 28.89 million in April, data from the Port Hedland Port Authority showed.
That was 28 percent higher than in May last year, a sign of still resilient demand from the Asian giant and of Australia's success in grabbing market share from other producers.
The gains came even as the price of the mineral slid 13 percent over the month to end May at $91.80 a tonne.
Overall shipments of iron ore from Port Hedland also climbed to a fresh record of 36.05 million tonnes, from 34.82 million tonnes in April and 27.9 million tonnes in May last year.
Shipments to South Korea picked up to 2.96 million tonnes in May, from 2.62 million tonnes the previous month. Shipments to Japan held steady at 2.48 million tonnes.
Port Hedland is used by BHP Billiton , Fortescue Metals Group and Atlas Iron to ship iron ore cargoes.
The steel-making mineral is Australia's single biggest export earner.
-
Company DirectoryFreight RateExport RateAgency PartnershipCargo Leads