BEIJING, Jan 13 (Reuters) - China's imports of iron ore rose 7.5 percent to a record 1.024 billion tonnes in 2016, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Friday, as economic stimulus measures sustained steel demand even as the government cracked down on excess capacity.
The total topped the 2015 record of 952.84 million tonnes.
Based on Reuters calculations, shipments in December were 88.76 million tonnes, down 3.5 percent from November and 8 percent from the monthly record of 96.26 million tonnes set in December 2015.
China, the world's top steelmaker, imports the vast majority of the world's sea-traded iron ore.