铁矿石新定价机制势必推高钢价

Steel prices set to soar

铁矿石新定价机制势必推高钢价

Global steel prices are set to leap by up to a third, pushing up the cost of everyday goods from cars to domestic appliances, after miners and steelmakers yesterday agreed a ground-breaking change in the iron ore price system.

全球钢价势必将上涨至多三分之一，推高从汽车到家电等各种商品的成本。矿商和钢铁企业昨日同意对铁矿石定价体制进行突破性的改革。

The deal by Vale of Brazil and Anglo-Australian BHP Billiton with Japanese and Chinese mills marks the end of the 40-year-old benchmark system of annual contracts and lengthy price negotiations. The industry instead agreed to move to quarterly contracts linked to the nascent iron ore spot market.
 
巴西淡水河谷(Vale)和英澳矿商必和必拓(BHP Billiton)与日本和中国钢厂签署的协议，标志着已有40年历史的年度价格基准体系和漫长价格谈判的结束。钢铁业同意采用与新兴的铁矿石现货市场挂钩的季度合约定价机制。

The world's top ore miners stand to profit hugely in the short term from the new price system. One executive estimated that the profits of the big three producers, Vale, Rio Tinto and BHP Billiton, would be boosted by at least $5bn this year.
 
全球最大的铁矿石矿商短期内将会从新定价机制获得巨大利润。一位高管估计，淡水河谷、力拓(Rio Tinto)和必和必拓三大矿商今年的利润将至少增加50亿美元。

The new system is a response to last year's stalemate in the negotiations between miners and Chinese steelmakers, when both sides were unable to reach an agreement on annual prices. The balance of pricing power has shifted in the miners' favour due to the emergence of China as a voracious consumer over the past 10 years.
 
新定价机制是对去年矿商与中国钢铁企业谈判陷入僵局的回应——当时双方未能就年度价格达成一致。由于中国在过去10年成为一个胃口庞大的铁矿石消费大国，定价权的天平已经向有利于矿商的一端倾斜。

The steelmakers said they would compensate for the increase in raw materials costs by raising steel prices by up to a third. Some companies have already raised their prices in anticipation of the move in iron ore. The cost of the benchmark hot rolled coil steel is likely to hit $725-$750 a tonne by the end of next quarter, up from $550 in January. It traded as low as $380 a tonne last year.
 
钢铁企业表示，它们将至多提高钢价三分之一，以补偿原材料成本的增加。一些企业基于铁矿石价格预期的上涨，已经提价。基准的热轧卷钢的成本可能在下个季度末达到每吨725至750美元，而1月份只有550美元。去年该产品的价格仅为每吨 380美元。

“The impact of higher raw material prices will be passed to consumers,” said Thorsten Zimmermann, a steel analyst at HSBC in London.
 
汇丰(HSBC)驻伦敦的钢铁业分析师托尔斯腾·齐默曼(Thorsten Zimmermann)表示：“原材料价格上涨的影响，将转嫁至消费者。”

Leading Japanese steel mills, including Nippon Steel, and Chinese steelmakers, including Baosteel, had signed the new quarterly contracts, executives said. European steelmakers have yet to sign any new quarterly contracts. Rio Tinto has not announced a contract, but executives expect it to soon.
 
高管们表示，新日铁(Nippon Steel)等日本主要钢铁企业，以及宝钢(Baosteel)等中国钢铁企业已经签署了新的季度合约。欧洲钢铁企业仍未签署新的季度合约。力拓没有宣布签署合约，但高管们预计该公司很快就会宣布。

The European steel industry association, which represents some of the largest companies in the industry such as ArcelorMittal and Thyssenkrupp, warned that the increase in iron ore costs will “inevitably” have a “significant impact on prices through the whole value chain down to the end consumer”.
 
代表阿塞洛-米塔尔(ArcelorMittal)和蒂森克虏伯 (ThyssenKrupp)等最大钢铁企业的欧洲钢铁业协会警告称，铁矿石成本增加将“不可避免地通过整个价值链传递给最终消费者，对价格产生显著影响”。

译者/何黎