There are plenty of S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) mining shares that are seeing painful declines today.
Let's look at some of those declines.
The BHP Group Ltd (ASX: BHP) share price is down by 4%.
It was a similar decline for the Rio Tinto Limited (ASX: RIO), which is currently down by 3.8%.
The Fortescue Metals Group Limited (ASX: FMG) share price is down by 4.6%.
The Mineral Resources Limited (ASX: MIN) share price is currently down 4.7%.
Canadian miner Champion Iron Ltd (ASX: CIA) has seen its share price decline by 7.8%.
It's not just iron ore miners that are suffering from the sell-off.
The Lynas Rare Earths Ltd (ASX: LYC) share price is down 7.2%.
The Pilbara Minerals Ltd (ASX: PLS) share price is down 6.5%. Elsewhere in the lithium sector, the Liontown Resources Ltd (ASX: LTR) share price is down 6% and the Allkem Ltd (ASX: AKE) share price is down almost 6%.
The Sandfire Resources Ltd (ASX: SFR) share price is down 5.6%, the IGO Ltd (ASX: IGO) share price is down 5.5% and the South32 Ltd (ASX: S32) share price is down 4.6%.
What is causing all of this negativity about ASX 200 mining shares?
Whilst most of the western world has moved into a 'stay open' frame of mind about COVID-19, China is taking a different approach with the Omicron variant.
The country is locking down certain regions to try to limit the spread of COVID-19.
According to reporting by various media, including the Australian Financial Review, these lockdowns are in important economic areas of China, which has shaken the confidence of investors and it will "almost certainly hit economic growth", meaning that demand for commodities could be lower.
Shenzhen is one of the places that have been locked down, which is a city with 17.5 million people.
It's not just ASX 200 mining shares that are being hurt during the current volatility.
There is also a concern about oil demand as well. That's why the Santos Ltd (ASX: STO) share price is down 3.8% and the Woodside Petroleum Limited (ASX: WPL) share price is down 2.9%.
What next?
Commodities are almost impossible to predict and share price movements are hard to forecast as well.
The BHP share price may be down 4% today, but it is still up by close to 7% in 2022 in the year to date.
Brokers at Macquarie believe that BHP shares have upside, partly thanks to strong commodity prices for nickel and copper. The Macquarie price target on BHP is $60.
