The price of iron ore has fallen in the latest session as investors weigh the impact of likely curbs on steel production in China in coming weeks.

At the end of the latest session, benchmark iron ore for immediate delivery to the port of Tianjin in China was trading at $US56.30 a tonne, down 0.2 per cent from $US56.40 a tonne in the prior session.

Its prior close represented a one-month peak.

The price has been trending higher over recent weeks, with gains first driven by reports of lacklustre supply from Australia and latter by news of a ramp-up in steel production in China.

Both phenomena are considered temporary, with the supply issues seen tied to weather, while steel production has been boosted by news Beijing will likely force steel mills in the Hebei province to shut for several weeks from late-August.

The closures are linked to the World Athletics Championships and a major World War II commemoration, with the government keen to curb air pollution for the two events.

After the events are over traders will again turn attention to the prospect of a supply glut over coming years as production expands and Chinese demand growth wavers.

On Thursday, Rio Tinto noted that current prices would continue to pressure suppliers at the middle and upper ends of the cost curve.

“Despite efforts across the industry to cut costs, recent low prices will continue to put pressure on marginal supply,” the miner said upon announcing its financial results.

Rio said around 120 million tonnes of iron ore had been taken off the global market in the first half of 2015, though new iron ore supply totalling 110 million tonnes is tipped to enter the global market in 2015.