MELBOURNE, May 4 (Reuters) - Australia's Fortescue Metals Group FMG.AX expects iron ore prices to stabilise as China takes steps to curb market speculation, which triggered a recent run-up the price of iron ore futures, the miner's chief executive said on Wednesday.
"The Chinese government wants more market forces to drive the economy and they are encouraging those processes," Fortescue CEO Nev Power told reporters on the sidelines of a conference.
"On the one hand the Chinese government wants to drive the economy with that process. But on the other hand, they do not want it to get out of control," he said.
Iron ore prices have jumped more than 45 percent since the start of the year on the back of a pick-up in demand from Chinese steel mills and futures' speculation, but major iron ore producers have said they expect prices to fall back later this year due to oversupply.