Anglo American has struck a yearlong supply deal with China’s State-backed iron-ore buyer, joining BHP Group among miners that have finalised an agreement with the group.

South African producer Kumba Iron-ore, part of Anglo American, reached a deal with China Mineral Resources Group Co to supply iron-ore to its mills from April 1 this year until March 31, 2027, according to a person familiar with the matter. The agreement doesn’t include-ore from Anglo’s Minas-Rio project in Brazil, which is not sold to China on a long-term contract basis, said the person, who didn’t want to be named discussing confidential information.

The world’s biggest iron-ore miners, including BHP and now Fortescue, have faced a harder time reaching a deal with the Chinese buyer group due to their large portfolios of ore. CMRG represents more than half of China’s steelmakers in procurement negotiations with global miners.

Kumba confirmed to analysts on an earnings call in late July that it had reached an agreement with CMRG, without giving details about the length or the terms. Its-ore is a premium product with a higher iron content, of which around 37 million tons was sold in 2025, according to the company’s results.

Anglo’s global head of sales and trading, Ebrahim Dadoo, told analysts on the call the company sells around 54% of its output into China. It also has volumes going into the country via spot sales and non-CMRG long-term contracts, so the volumes under the CMRG contract are “fairly small on our overall portfolio,” he said.

Bloomberg calculations put the potential volume of Kumba iron-ore going to CMRG at around 8 to 10 million tons based on confirmed sales, estimated spot sales, and the reported number of CMRG member mills.

A spokesperson for Anglo American declined to comment further. CMRG didn’t immediately respond to a request.

“We’ve had very constructive engagements with CMRG, we’ve got an agreement in place with them as of the first of April, and that does impact our products that we sell to CMRG member mills,” Dadoo said in a transcript of the call dated July 28.

BHP faced restrictions and months of talks before it was able to agree to a yearlong deal with more yuan pricing, while FMG is currently in the midst of tense negotiations. The next hurdle is what happens when the deals come up for renewal next year, and whether CMRG will try to eke out more concessions.