International credit rating agency Fitch Solutions has announced that it has revised upwards its Australian coking coal price forecast for 2023 from US$300/mt to US$350/mt.
The agency expects coking coal prices to remain elevated at around current levels in the coming months mainly due to China lifting its ban on Australian coal.
Meanwhile, Australian coking coal prices are anticipated to decrease in the coming years due to lower demand from the country’s main export markets, India and Japan. Fitch Solutions forecasts that Australian coking coal prices will average at US$300/mt in 2024, US$280/mt in 2025, US$260/mt in 2026 and US$250/mt 2027.
The agency stated that the need for coking coal in steelmaking will decline with the transition to green steelmaking processes, hampering long-term demand for the fossil fuel and its price outlook.