Sydney, Feb 15, 2026, 17:25 AEDT — Trading wrapped up for the session.
Fortescue Ltd (FMG.AX) dropped 1.9% to finish Friday at A$21.21, putting the iron ore miner on the back foot going into Monday. 1
Iron ore futures slid on Friday, with traders unwinding positions ahead of China’s Lunar New Year holiday. The Singapore Exchange’s March benchmark dropped 1.24% to $98.35 per ton, while Dalian’s most-active May contract slipped 1.51% to 752.5 yuan ($108.97). “Hot metal production … has continued to pull back,” said Atilla Widnell, managing director at Navigate Commodities, pointing to weaker blast-furnace activity as mills idled before the break. 2
Timing is crucial for Fortescue, with FY26 half-year results set for Feb. 25. Investors will be watching for updates on costs, production, and payouts, especially as iron ore prices head lower into the break. 3
The stock logged its second consecutive drop, extending Thursday’s 1.95% slide, historical pricing data show. 4
Fortescue’s attention isn’t just on iron ore. The miner has been ramping up decarbonisation efforts at its mine sites, with two new battery-electric locomotives joining its Pilbara heavy-haul operations. Chief executive Dino Otranto said the company plans to run these electric units alongside its current diesel trains, aiming to trial them before making the switch to what he called a “fully decarbonised solution” for rail. 5
According to Miningweekly, each locomotive is fitted with a 14.5 megawatt-hour battery, and regenerative braking lets them reclaim between 40% and 60% of the energy as trains decelerate. Fortescue’s growth and energy chief Gus Pichot described battery storage as “the backbone of a renewable-powered mining system” while the company moves ahead with its Pilbara Energy Connect project. 6
For markets, those projects remain in the background. The real driver is iron ore. Most investors still view Fortescue as a proxy for China’s appetite for steel, and the seaborne ore price it dictates.
Fortescue shipped 50.5 million metric tons of iron ore in the second quarter, up 2% and topping the 50.3 million forecast from Visible Alpha. The increase was driven by gains at the Iron Bridge magnetite project, according to the company’s latest operational update. 7
It’s not just copper—volatility has hit industrial metals across the board. “Macro-driven risk-off sentiment and broad profit-taking continue to unwind the strong early-year rally,” ING commodities strategist Ewa Manthey wrote in a separate metals note, as China’s futures markets approach a holiday shutdown. 8
The set-up’s anything but clean. Should steelmakers keep playing it safe post-holiday and iron ore holds below $100 a ton, traders may pivot even more toward dividend bets and costs when Fortescue’s numbers drop. On top of that, weather can throw everything off—shipping snarls could squeeze supply fast if conditions deteriorate.
