Australian iron ore producers maintain prices for the ore sold during a period of declining ore quality by shifting sales from small ore to large-scale ore.
The country's four largest iron ore mining companies — BHP, Rio Tinto, Fortescue and Mineral Resources — have faced problems with ore quality in recent years.
In late October, Fortescue announced plans to replace its 60% Fe-containing West Pilbara Fines product with 55% Fe in the 2026-27 fiscal year through June 30. Similarly, in May, Rio Tinto adjusted the requirements for the iron content in its Pilbara Blend ore from 61.6% to 60.8%.
. However, iron ore prices reported by Australian producers have remained stable — relative to market prices — over the past year, partly due to their shift towards lumpy iron ore rather than fine fractions.
Iron ore lumps tend to be more expensive to sell than fine fractions of a similar category, as they require less processing. Argus"The price of 62pcs Fe cfr lump iron ore in Qingdao increased by 7.45-12.40 USD/ton compared to the price of 62pcs Fe (ICX) cfr fine iron ore in Qingdao.
Mineral resources
Mineral Resources". The average iron content in the Pilbara Hub ore in July-September was 56.9%, compared with 57.3% a year earlier. On the other hand, its share of one-time sales increased from 28% to 37% over the same period. Previously, the company's share in total sales increased in January-June (see the table).
Mineral Resources' rapid sales growth in physical terms fully offset the decline in ore quality, resulting in an average selling price at the Pilbara Hub rising to 98% Argus In July-September 2025, 58% Fe was mined at cfr Qingdao compared to 93% a year earlier.
Even Australia's largest iron ore producer maintains the average selling price by increasing sales of unit products.
Rio Tinto
Sales of the Rio Tinto SP10 fine fraction, which is extracted from low—grade ore deposits in the Pilbara, increased by 37% year-on-year in January-June, to 24 million tons from 17 million tons a year earlier, while sales of the higher-quality fine fraction in the Pilbara blend fell by 16%.
But the company's average fob iron ore sales price decreased by only 1 percentage point over the same period - compared to the Argus price by 62% compared to the Fe fines cfr price in Qingdao — from 90% to 89% over the same period. The average selling price of Rio Tinto ore remained unchanged, as sales of lump ore increased over the year, while sales of fine ore fell (see table).
In July, Rio Tinto continued to switch to smaller ore of lower quality in September, which is likely to support the average selling price of ore. Sales of lumpy iron ore increased by 3.7%, while sales of fine ore fell
