Weekly recap: Global coal market trends (week 28, 2024)

• South African coal portside prices decline at Indian ports
  
  
• Coal India empowers subsidiaries to fix reserve prices of e-auctions
  
  
• Indian met coke prices drop amid subdued demand, falling pig iron offers
  
  

South African coal portside prices decline at Indian ports- South African thermal coal prices have dropped at Indian ports this week, aligning with international trends. Prices of RB3 (4800 NAR) at Gangavaram and Vizag Ports were recorded at INR 8,100/t, down INR 100/t w-o-w. South African coal prices continued downtrend and is expected to witness similar traits in short term on low buying interest from sponge players and minimal transactions taking place.

Australian met coal prices down w-o-w- Australian premium hard coking coal prices fell by 2% w-o-w to $248/t FOB and $264.9/ t CNF on 12th July, 2024. Prices fell on low demand due to prevailing weak steel demand. Also, on high stocks with end users, some reselling cargoes were heard in the market.

Pet coke import prices to India edge up - Prices of imported pet coke (6.5% S) rose to $107-108/t CFR on the west coast and $109-110/t CFR on the east coast of India, despite the onset of the monsoon reducing demand. India's pet coke imports increased by 31% in the first half of calendar year 2024 (H1CY24) to 8.03 million tonnes (mnt) as against 6.1 mnt in H1CY23, as per BigMint data.

IOCL adjusts fuel grade petcoke prices for July 2024 deliveries - Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) has revised its fuel grade petcoke prices for July 2024 deliveries. At the Koyali refinery, road delivery prices have increased slightly to INR 11,170/tonne (t) from INR 11,150/t. Prices at the Paradip refinery have risen to INR 10,390/t, while Haldia's prices have edged up to INR 10,560/t.

Indian met coke prices drop amid subdued demand, falling pig iron offers- Indian met coke prices have decreased by INR 700/t w-o-w, settling at INR 34,800/t exw Jajpur, The drop in steel grade pig iron prices by INR 500/t to INR 37,600/t ex-works Durgapur has also pressured met coke prices.

Indonesian thermal coal portside prices remain stable amid low buying interest - Indonesian thermal coal portside prices remained stable this week. In India, imports of spot cargoes are limited as coastal power plants have maintained decent stocks. Prices of 3400 GAR coal at Navlakhi port were stable at INR 5,200/t. Prices of 4200 GAR coal at Kandla port stood at INR 6,300/t ex-port. Meanwhile, prices of 5000 GAR for both Vizag and Kandla ports also remained stable this week.

Bulk coal vessel freights edge down w-o-w except from Indonesia - Coal vessel freight rates have exhibited mixed trends this week. There is no shortage of cargoes in the market currently and no significant surge in demand has been seen. As per BigMint's assessment, freight rates from Port Hay Point to Paradip were recorded at $16.7/dry metric tonne (dmt), down by $0.2/t w-o-w. Freight rates for coal shipments from the Richards Bay Coal Terminal (RBCT) to Paradip are currently at $16.4/dmt, down $0.3/t w-o-w.

Coal India empowers subsidiaries to fix reserve prices of e-auctions - Coal India Limited (CIL), a Maharatna Company, has announced a new directive empowering its subsidiaries as well as North Eastern Coalfields (NEC) to set reserve prices for coal e-auctions. This move aims to address the declining trend in international coal prices and the increased supply from CIL, which has led to a saturation of demand in the domestic market. Last week, CIL decided to reduce the Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) for its single window mode agnostic e-auction to encourage broader participation.

China coal imports rise 12.5% y-o-y in H1CY'24 - In H1CY'24, China imported 250 mnt of coal, an increase of 12.5% y-o-y against 222 mnt in H1CY'23, according to data from the General Administration of Customs. Lower domestic coal production and increased electricity demand boosted imports.