During the week ending July 10, local coke prices in China have remained stable compared to July 3 as Chinese mills have been resisting acceptance of the tenth round of increases proposed since late last week. Also, the weakening of the market is reflected in some softening of coking coal prices.
During the given week, the tenth round of hikes of coke prices has been under negotiation, but not implemented yet. The release of coke supply has been limited amid declining capacity utilization rates of coking plants. But inventories of coke have shifted from declines to rises, signaling the end of continuous destocking, exerting a negative impact on prices. Molten iron output is expected to be at relatively high levels, which will bolster the demand for coke and positively affect prices. Some steelmakers in Hebei and Shanxi have announced their maintenances plans, which will weaken the support for coke prices. It is thought that coke prices in the Chinese domestic market will fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week.
First-grade coke prices in Tangshan are at RMB 2,115/mt ($311.1/mt) ex-warehouse, moving sideways compared to July 3, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
Prices of coke in local markets in China
| Product Name | Specification | Place of Origin | Price（RMB/mt） | Price ($/mt) | Weekly Change（RMB/mt） | Weekly Change（$/mt） |
| Coke | First grade （A<13.0,S<0.75,CSR>65.0） | Hancheng, Shaanxi | 1,995 | 293.4 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Zibo, Shandong | 2,130 | 313.3 | 0.0 | 0.3 | ||
| Pingdingshan, Henan | 1,980 | 291.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 | ||
| Tangshan | 2,115 | 311.1 | 0.0 | 0.3 | ||
| Huaibei, Anhui | 2,030 | 298.6 | 0.0 | 0.3 | ||
| Average | 2,050 | 301.5 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
including 13 percent VAT
Prices of coking coal in local markets in China
| Product Name | Specification | Place of Origin | Price（RMB/mt） | Price ($/mt) | Weekly Change（RMB/mt） | Weekly Change（$/mt） |
| Coking Coal | A9,S0.4,V19,G88 | Linfen low-sulfur primary coking coal | 2,020 | 297.1 | 0.0 | 0.8 |
| A10.5,S3,V25,G80 | Lveliang high-sulfur primary coking coal | 1,654 | 243.3 | 5.0 | 1.4 | |
| A10,S1.8,V21,G90 | Jinzhong medium-sulfur primary coal | 1,580 | 232.4 | -141.0 | -20.1 | |
| A12,S1.2,V37.G90 | Linfen low-sulfur 1/3 coking coal | 1,230 | 180.9 | 0.0 | 0.5 | |
| Average | 1,621 | 238.4 | -34.0 | -4.4 |
During the given week, coking coal prices in the Chinese domestic market have fluctuated within a limited range, though some specifications have indicated downward corrections. Due to the safety inspections at major production bases, coking prices have moved sideways. Meanwhile, the tight supply of coking coal will bolster prices to a certain degree.
At the same time, import premium hard coking coal prices have softened by $7.5/mt on average over the week to $250-255/mt CFR. This level reflects the tradable level, based on buyers’ targets. Moreover, ex-Australia PHCC has settled at $240/mt FOB, down by $4/mt on average over the past week due to lower bids heard at $237-241/mt FOB this week.
On July 10, offer prices of coke CSR65 in the export market were at $293/mt FOB, remaining stable compared to July 3. But Indonesian CSR63/65 coke has been sold at $275/mt FOB, reflecting the real market level.
As of July 10, coking coal futures at Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) are standing at RMB 1,257.5/mt ($185/mt), decreasing by RMB 24.5/mt ($3.6/mt) or 1.9 percent since July 3, while declining by 2.52 percent compared to the previous trading day, July 9. Meanwhile, coke futures prices at Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) are standing at RMB 1,913/mt ($281/mt), decreasing by RMB 25/mt ($3.7/mt) or 1.3 percent since July 3, while declining by 1.87 percent compared to the previous trading day, July 9.
$1 = RMB 6.7989
