Somebody (killswitch?)answered the question about shipping costs sometime ago.
CWRN has often emphasized it will be selling spot prices to retire debt earlier-I don't think that has changed(thats one reason why CWRN keeps spot price link posted) and spot prices have generally been higher than fixed prices(as you can gather from the article)-partly because price/ton has risen from $27 in 2003 to a spot price around $150 now(that's one reason margins are so high now).
Prices have risen dramatically partly because China had a monopoly in setting prices until its suppliers stood firm in the last couple years and broke Chinas ability to set the price by fiat.
Remember that many wars have been fought over natural resources,including Japans attack against the U.S. to secure natural resources it needed for its economy and was afraid Americas growing reach would put those resources out of Japans reach,plus the Gulf wars many say.
Economies that grow and make their money from processing of natural resources,especially China and Japan, will go to great lengths to secure those resources. Thats why China is doing public works projects pro bono all over Africa etc to get a leg up on Africas iron etc.
Due to this situation China will take advantage of seasonal slowdowns to stock what it needs -like a nervous miser afraid it will not have enough.
SEMPER FI,which somewhat ironically is also the motto for some of China's(and other nations)armed forces also.
