Today, May 5, ArcelorMittal Sourcing, the distributor for leading global steelmaker ArcelorMittal, appears to have been searching to push global coking coal prices down. Specifically, the company has floated a tender for 72,000 mt of ex-Australia low-volatility premium hard coking coal (HCCLV), with 15-24 May laycan, consisting of Peak Downs/BMA and Peak Downs North brands. A trade has been done at $378/mt FOB Australia.
Meanwhile, on the GlobalCoal trading platform, a 80,000 mt cargo of HCCLV Peak Downs, for June laycan has been traded at $520/mt FOB. The price corresponds to the level fixed in the transaction done previously on April 27.
The big movement in price has caused uncertainty among market insiders with regard to the future developments in the segment. “One party is trying to crash prices, while the other one is trying to lift them,” an international trader commented with regard to the recent transactions. “AM (ArcelorMittal) aims to lower the index so they can buy a long-term contract at a lower price. But nobody knows what levels we will see in the coming deals. Trades represent the numbers. This is what it is,” a market source stated.
Given the lower-priced deal, on the one side, and taking into account that ArcelorMittal Sourcing is not a traditional coking coal supplier, on the other side, SteelOrbis has opted to lower its assessment for ex-Australia coking coal to $500/mt FOB, down $20/mt from the previous level.