China’s plans for more high-speed rail corridors to connect its major cities is the latest spur to the country’s demand for iron ore as pressure has eased on profit margins for Chinese steel mills.

Australian iron ore exploration spending rose to A$395.5mn in 2020 from A$349.6mn in 2019 and A$300.9mn in 2018.

According to the data released on Sunday by the General Administration of Customs, China’s imports of iron ore reached 181.5 million tons in the fist two months of 2021, up 2.8% from 176.6 million tons a year earlier.

Fortescue shipped 3.42mn dwt, up from 3.01mn dwt the week before but 3pc below its average of 3.54mn dwt.

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"China has been the largest market for Vale since 2006 and has become more and more important to Vale in recent years," Xie said.

The amount exceeded the previous record of 1.08 billion tons in 2017, said the General Administration of Customs.