China’s state-backed iron ore buyer directs mills to pause Rio Tinto purchases

China Mineral Resources Group, the state-backed entity Beijing created to centralize the country’s iron ore purchasing power, has instructed domestic steel mills to stop negotiating with Rio Tinto over shipment details and volumes for deliveries starting in September 2026. The directive, issued on August 6, is the latest salvo in what’s becoming a recurring pattern: CMRG squeezing major Australian miners during annual contract talks by temporarily cutting off their access to the world’s largest iron ore market. What CMRG is actually doing CMRG now negotiates on behalf of more than half of China’s annual iron ore imports, which total over 1.2 billion metric tons according to Wood Mackenzie. That’s an extraordinary amount of leverage concentrated in a single buyer. By telling mills to pause independent discussions with Rio Tinto over its Pilbara Blend product, CMRG is effectively removing the miner’s ability to work around the centralized negotiator. The group has previously deployed the same playbook against BHP and Fortescue, two other major Australian iron ore producers. In those cases, restrictions were eventually lifted after executive visits and supply agreements were reached. ...