Iron Ore Prices Plunge to Nine-Month Low

Iron ore, widely seen as a real-time barometer of China's economic pulse, is flashing fresh warning signs. Prices slid for a fourth straight session in Singapore, dropping below $93 a ton and hitting their lowest level in nine months. China, the world's largest consumer of iron ore, imports more than 70% of globally traded volumes. That gives iron ore prices an outsized role as a proxy for Chinese economic momentum, and the latest trade data suggests the world's second-largest economy is still struggling to gain momentum, remaining mired in deflation.…