Steelmakers around the world breathed a sigh of relief at the abandonment of the planned BHP/Rio Tinto joint venture in iron ore production, although they warned that it would not bring an end to the price pressures on the industry.

Wolfgang Eder, chief executive of Voestalpine, Austria’s biggest steel producer, and the chairman of Eurofer, the trade association for Europe’s steelmakers, said he welcomed the news “especially in view of the already highly concentrated suppliers’ market [governing production of iron ore]”.

But Mr Eder pointed out that it was important for the steel industry to find “alternative and additional sources” of iron ore to reduce the market dominance of the three companies – BHP, Rio and Vale – that control 70 per cent of transcontinental shipments of the commodity.