July 29 (Reuters) - Australia's Fortescue Metals Group Ltd on Thursday reported record iron ore shipments for its fourth quarter, as strong industrial activity in top consumer China underpinned demand for the steelmaking ingredient.

The world's fourth-largest iron ore miner shipped 49.3 million tonnes (Mt) of ore in the quarter ended June 30, compared with 47.3 Mt a year ago, edging past a UBS estimate of 49 Mt. (Reporting by Shashwat Awasthi and Arundhati Dutta in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)