SINGAPORE: Iron ore futures retreated further on Tuesday as the outcome of China’s key Politburo meeting and the strong global supply outlook both weighed.

The most-traded September iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 2.77% lower at 756 yuan ($104.14) a metric ton.

The benchmark August iron ore on the Singapore Exchange fell 3.08% to $98.75 a ton, its lowest since April 8, as of 0700 GMT. China will step up policy support for the economy, focusing on boosting consumption to expand domestic demand, the Politburo, the ruling Communist Party’s top decision-making body, said on Tuesday.

Currently, China faces increasing adverse effects stemming from changes in the external environment, insufficient domestic demand, and a painful transition from old growth drivers to new ones, the Politburo said following a meeting chaired by President Xi Jinping.

China’s factory activity likely shrank for a third month in July, keeping alive expectations of further stimulus as a protracted property crisis and job insecurity drag on growth.

Rising port inventories did not help iron ore prices, as they signalled a sustained weakness in steel mill demand, said ANZ analysts in a note.

Total iron ore stockpiles across ports in China climbed 1.47% week-on-week to 151.8 million tons as of July 26, Steelhome data showed. The total volume of iron ore shipments dispatched to global destinations from the 19 ports and 16 mining companies in Australia and Brazil rebounded to 24.9 million tons over July 22-28, rising 4.4% week-on-week, Chinese consultancy Mysteel said.