BEIJING, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Chinese mining firms are calling for an anti-dumping probe into iron ore imported from Australia and Brazil, an industry association said Tuesday.

An application for an investigation will be filed to the Ministry of Commerce by the Metallurgical Mines' Association of China on behalf of over 20 major companies in the country's iron ore mining industry.

Major overseas miners have been selling large quantities of iron ore to China "at low prices," which "has and will continue to do substantial harm to the domestic industry," the association said in a statement.

China buys more than 80 percent of iron ore products from major global miners, with the volume of imports on the rise in recent years and their prices well below the production costs of the domestic industry, it said.

Without timely anti-dumping measures, China's strategic resource security will be seriously affected, according to the association.

It pointed to withdrawn investment, heavy losses and closed factories as evidence of the negative impact on Chinese miners.

Less than 65 percent of Chinese miners are still in business, the association said, noting that nearly 85 percent of iron ore consumed in China is now imported.

China imported 953 million tonnes of iron ore in 2015, up 2.2 percent year on year, official data show.