Iron ore
World mine production and reserves, 2024–2025
Share of world mine production (usable ore), 2025 · world total 2.6 billion metric tons
- Australia 38%
- Brazil 16%
- India 12%
- China 11%
- Iran 3.6%
- Russia 3.3%
- Canada 2.6%
- South Africa 2.5%
- All other countries 11%
Australia accounted for 38% of world mine production of iron ore in 2025 (980 million metric tons). The United States was a net exporter of iron ore in 2025. Australia also holds the largest reserves, 29% of the world figure. Brazil supplied 58% of U.S. imports of iron ore in 2021–24, more than any other country.
Producer log
17 countries listed separately
| Country | Mine production (usable ore) 2024 | Mine production (usable ore) 2025 | Share of world 2025 | Change on 2024 | Mine production (iron content) 2024 | Mine production (iron content) 2025 | Change on 2024 | Reserves (crude ore) | Share of world reserves | Reserves (iron content) | Share of world reserves |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 982,000 | 980,000 | 38% | −0.2% | 607,000 | 600,000 | −1.2% | 59,000 | 29% | 27,000 | 31% |
| Brazil | 428,000 | 420,000 | 16% | −1.9% | 268,000 | 260,000 | −3% | 34,000 | 17% | 15,000 | 17% |
| India | 282,000 | 310,000 | 12% | +9.9% | 175,000 | 190,000 | +8.6% | 5,500 | 2.7% | 3,400 | 3.9% |
| China | 293,000 | 290,000 | 11% | −1% | 183,000 | 180,000 | −1.6% | 17,000 | 8.3% | 3,000 | 3.4% |
| Iran | 90,000 | 93,000 | 3.6% | +3.3% | 59,000 | 61,000 | +3.4% | 4,200 | 2.1% | 1,500 | 1.7% |
| Russia | 91,000 | 86,000 | 3.3% | −5.5% | 53,000 | 50,000 | −5.7% | 35,000 | 17% | 14,000 | 16% |
| Canada | 70,000 | 69,000 | 2.6% | −1.4% | 42,000 | 41,000 | −2.4% | 6,000 | 2.9% | 2,300 | 2.6% |
| South Africa | 64,000 | 66,000 | 2.5% | +3.1% | 41,000 | 42,000 | +2.4% | 1,200 | 0.6% | 680 | 0.8% |
| Ukraine | 54,700 | 52,000 | 2% | −4.9% | 34,000 | 32,000 | −5.9% | 6,500 | 3.2% | 2,300 | 2.6% |
| United States | 45,100 | 38,000 | 1.5% | −16% | 28,600 | 24,000 | −16% | 3,600 | 1.8% | 2,700 | 3.1% |
| Kazakhstan | 37,000 | 35,000 | 1.3% | −5.4% | 11,100 | 11,000 | −0.9% | 3,800 | 1.9% | 1,500 | 1.7% |
| Sweden | 25,000 | 26,000 | 1% | +4% | 18,000 | 18,000 | 0% | 1,300 | 0.6% | 600 | 0.7% |
| Peru | 19,800 | 21,000 | 0.8% | +6.1% | 13,300 | 14,000 | +5.3% | 1,800 | 0.9% | 1,000 | 1.1% |
| Chile | 18,000 | 19,000 | 0.7% | +5.6% | 11,000 | 12,000 | +9.1% | 3,000 | 1.5% | 740 | 0.9% |
| Turkey | 17,000 | 18,000 | 0.7% | +5.9% | 11,000 | 11,000 | 0% | 150 | under 0.1% | 99 | 0.1% |
| Mauritania | 14,300 | 15,000 | 0.6% | +4.9% | 8,940 | 9,300 | +4% | 10,000 | 4.9% | 4,400 | 5.1% |
| Mexico | 7,800 | 7,700 | 0.3% | −1.3% | 4,900 | 4,800 | −2% | 940 | 0.5% | 520 | 0.6% |
| Other countries | 60,700 | 64,000 | 2.5% | 34,700 | 36,000 | 11,000 | 6,000 | ||||
| World total | 2,600,000 | 2,600,000 | 100% | 0% | 1,600,000 | 1,600,000 | 0% | 200,000 | 100% | 87,000 | 100% |
Output versus reserves
same commodity, two measures
Mine production (usable ore), 2025
- Australia 38%
- Brazil 16%
- India 12%
- China 11%
- Iran 3.6%
- All other countries 20%
Reserves (crude ore) (world 200 billion metric tons)
- Australia 29%
- Russia 17%
- Brazil 17%
- China 8.3%
- Mauritania 4.9%
- All other countries 24%
Reserves are the part of identified deposits that USGS considers economic to extract now; they change as prices, technology and surveys change. At the 2025 rate, the world reserve figure equals about 54 years of output.
United States
supply, trade and import sources
Net import reliance in 2025, as a percentage of apparent consumption. “E” marks years when the United States exported more than it imported.
Import sources, 2021–24
- Brazil 58%
- Canada 21%
- Sweden 10%
- Chile 4%
- Other countries 7%
| Item | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Production: Iron ore | 49,500 | 41,000 | 46,000 | 45,100 | 38,000 |
| Production: Iron metallics | 5,010 | 5,240 | 5,480 | 5,220 | 5,200 |
| Shipments | 47,700 | 40,500 | 46,600 | 44,200 | 40,000 |
| Imports for consumption | 3,740 | 3,030 | 3,540 | 3,100 | 4,000 |
| Exports | 14,400 | 11,400 | 11,100 | 10,500 | 7,800 |
| Consumption, apparent | 37,100 | 32,100 | 39,000 | 36,800 | 37,000 |
| Stocks, mine, dock, and consuming plant, yearend | 5,060 | 5,590 | 5,030 | 5,870 | 3,570 |
| Employment, mine, concentrating and pelletizing plants, number | 4,980 | 4,790 | 4,810 | 4,900 | 4,300 |
Source: USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, Iron ore chapter (PDF page 116). How to read these figures.