Coal inventory at Chinese ports has surged recently. From February 9 to February 23, inventory at the northeastern port of Qinhuangdao rose from 5,460,000 mt to 6,975,000 mt while inventory at Guangzhou port in the south saw almost exactly the same increase.
Meanwhile, as stated by Wang Lifeng, general manager of the Qinhuangdao Ocean Shipping Coal Transaction Market, current coal prices continue to point in a downward direction.
Mr. Wang said that the domestic coal market in China has now witnessed a big change as regards the demand and supply situation. The shortages previously witnessed in coal supply now no longer exist and there is at present a saturation of supply especially in the central and eastern regions of China.
With factories shut down, and the weather getting warmer and warmer, consumption of electricity and of coal decreased during the Chinese New Year holiday. Coal consumption has now entered its low season. Coal prices have continued to slide down due to high inventories at power generation plants and due to the increase of coal inventories at the ports.