China is still in talks with suppliers of iron ore, BHP Billiton Ltd. (BHP.AU) and a Chinese steel industry executive said Wednesday.

The Chinese executive, who declined to be named, confirmed that the talks were continuing after the China Business News reported on its Web site Wednesday, citing unnamed sources, that China had struck a deal with iron ore suppliers for cuts of 33%-44% in iron ore prices for the contract period between April and October.

A BHP spokeswoman declined to comment on the report, but she said price talks are ongoing.

"We will make an announcement when the majority of our contracts have been settled," she said.

The China Iron and Steel Association has been leading the negotiations for Chinese steel mills with Brazilian miner Vale S.A. (VALE) and Anglo-Australian miners Rio Tinto PLC (RTP) and BHP.

The three mining majors account for a combined 70% of global iron ore export sales.

The China Business News report didn't say which firms had struck deals.

The report said iron ore talks for the second half were ongoing, implying that current negotiations may have shifted to a semi-annual basis due to the six-month contract term reportedly reached.

In the past, the iron ore negotiations would wrap up before April 1, the start date for annual contracts. But in recent years, negotiations have become more protracted, culminating this year in a months-long standoff between miners and Chinese mills over the extent of the price cuts.

-By J.R. Wu, Dow Jones Newswires; 8610 6588-5848; jr.wu@dowjones.com

(Juan Chen, Li Yue and Alex Wilson contributed to this story.)