鐵礦石價格跌至兩年來新低
Iron ore fell for the eighth day in a row yesterday, tumbling to a fresh two-year low.
鐵礦石價格昨日連續第8天下挫，跌至2年以來的新低。Benchmark Australian ore, with a 62 per cent iron content, dropped 70 cents to $88.20 a tonne, according to The Steel Index, bringing the losses since the middle of the month to 5.6 per cent.
根據The Steel Index提供的數據，澳大利亞基準鐵礦石（含鐵量爲62%）的價格下跌70美分，至每噸88.2美元，自本月中旬以來的累計跌幅達到5.6%。The price of the steelmaking ingredient has sunk 35 per cent this year on concerns about increasing global supplies and slower demand in China, which consumes about two-thirds of world seaborne iron ore.
今年以來，這種鍊鋼原料的價格已經下降了35%，因爲市場擔憂國際供應量上升而中國的需求在減速。中國的鐵礦石消費量約爲世界海運鐵礦石的三分之二。
The commodity is crucial to the profitability of several of the world’s largest mining companies, including BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto, Anglo American and Vale.
鐵礦石對世界上最大的幾個礦業公司的盈利能力至關重要，包括必和必拓(BHP Billiton)、力拓(Rio Tinto)、英美資源公司(Anglo American)和淡水河谷(Vale)。They are spending billions of dollars increasing output to meet anticipated future demand, and capture market share, while pushing the global market into surplus.
這些公司正花費數十億美元提高產出以滿足預期的未來需求，並搶佔市場份額，此舉使全球市場進入供過於求的狀態。While these companies’ low production costs mean they can endure depressed prices in the medium term, it is not the same for smaller miners, from Australia to west Africa and China, which just three years ago were smiling as prices rose towards $200 a tonne.
這些公司的生產成本較低，這意味着它們可以在中期承受低迷的價格，但對從澳大利亞到西非、中國等地規模較小的礦企來說就不是這樣了。3年前，鐵礦石價格逼近每噸200美元，讓這些較小的礦企滿心歡喜。Marginal producers now have to make “pretty aggressive decisions” about curtailing output, according to Colin Hamilton, head of commodities research at Macquarie.
麥格理(Macquarie)大宗商品研究主管科林•漢密爾頓(Colin Hamilton)表示，處於邊緣的生產者現在必須就縮減產出做出“相當激進的決策”。When the scale of the supply glut became clear this year, the iron ore price briefly dropped below $90 a tonne in June. Higher-cost miners received a brief respite when the price recovered to $98 a tonne a month later as Chinese steel mills built up inventories.
今年供應過剩的規模變得明朗後，鐵礦石的價格在6月一度跌破每噸90美元。1個月後，由於中國的鍊鋼廠開始積累庫存，鐵礦石價格回覆至每噸98美元，讓生產成本較高的礦企獲得了短暫的喘息時間。But this restocking has slowed, analysts say, causing prices to slide once more, to levels last seen in September 2012.
但分析師們表示，中國補充庫存的速度放緩了，這使價格又一次下滑，跌至2012年9月以來的最低水平。“The willingness from Chinese steel mills to take on more stock is weakening, and marginal buyers are lacking in the market,” said Mr Hamilton.
“中國鍊鋼廠積累更多庫存的意願在變弱，而市場上又缺乏邊緣買家，”漢密爾頓說。“Given that mill inventories are not low, the price could still fall further.”
“考慮到鍊鋼廠的庫存量並不低，價格可能進一步下降。”If the iron ore price slips another $2 a tonne, it will be the lowest since October 2009.
如果每噸鐵礦石的價格再下滑2美元，就會跌至2009年10月以來的最低水平。Chinese steel production has expanded by nearly 3 per cent this year, but demand growth during the first half of the year was only 0.4 per cent, according to the China Iron and Steel Association. One reason for this slowdown is the weakness in the country’s property sector.
根據中國鋼鐵工業協會(China Iron and Steel Association)的數據，今年中國的鋼產量上升了近3%，但上半年的需求僅增長0.4%。需求放緩的一個原因是中國房地產業的低迷。
