Miners usher in quarterly iron ore pricing arrangement

Sydney: Effective tomorrow, BHP Biliton and Vale, two of the world's largest miners, have jettisoned the 40-year-old annual pricing contracts for iron ore in favour of quarterly negotiations with Asia's steel mills. Rio Tinto, the other mining giant, is keen to follow the same route. By moving to quarterly contracts, the amount of iron ore traded on the spot market -- roughly a third of all trades - is expected to decrease.

(Source: www.schednet.com)