Even as investors worried about rising trade tensions between the United States and China, Dalian iron ore futures rose slightly on Friday and are expected to see a small weekly gain, helped by lower port stocks in China.

At 03:20 GMT, the most traded iron ore contract in May on the Chinese Commodity Exchange in Dalian (DCE) rose by 0.25% to 803 yuan (110.73 dollars) per metric ton, gaining 0.38% since the start of the week. The February reference price of iron ore on the Singapore Stock Exchange was up by 0.71% to $104.45 per ton. The Chinese consultancy Hexun Futures said in a note that the contract has lost 0.14% since the start of the week. In China, the main consumer country, overseas shipments and port arrivals have declined, and port inventories have declined. Other steel-making ingredients on DCE declined, with coking coal and coke falling by 1.79% and 2.33% respectively. The reference steel prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange have also weakened. Rebar and hot-rolled coils both lost about 0.6%, wire rod lost 0.45%, and stainless steel fell by 0.34%