Despite rally in China, steel and iron ore face worst month

Manila

CHINESE commodities rallied broadly on Friday in a rare respite from a weeks-long reversal that has hit steel-linked materials particularly hard, with steel and iron ore futures still headed for their biggest monthly falls on record.

Analysts pinned the gains on short-term production curbs in China's biggest steelmaking city and an "oversold" market after a selloff that has left some commodities nursing losses of more than 20 per cent in just five weeks.