MANILA: Dalian iron ore fell on Friday and was set for its first weekly drop in two months, as worries about demand weakness in top steel producer China outweighed supply risks flagged by the world’s biggest miners.

China has vowed to continue curbing steel output this year, in line with its goal to reduce carbon emissions.

Further clouding the demand outlook for the steelmaking ingredient is the risk of recurring COVID-19 outbreaks in China, especially in steel production hubs.

Several districts in Tangshan city have been placed again under lockdown this week. The most-traded September iron ore on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange fell as much as 3% to 876 yuan ($135.56) a tonne, its lowest since April 14. The contract has fallen more than 2% this week.

On the Singapore Exchange, the most-active May iron ore contract rose 0.4% to $151.75 a tonne by 0226 GMT. Spot iron ore in China had fallen 2.9% this week to $152 a tonne, as of Thursday, SteelHome consultancy data showed.