Prices for ex-Australia premium hard coking coal (PHCC) have softened since late last week as more offers at lower levels have emerged, indicating an improvement in supply, while demand in the major trade destinations has still been weak.
An offer for 75,000 mt of low-volatile Oaky North PHCC was at $190/mt FOB on Friday and $188/mt FOB on Monday, while on Tuesday the tradable level for low-volatile material was at $185/mt FOB, according to market sources. Demand for low-volatile material, which is more popular in China and in the Far East, has been limited and the mills have had the option to buy cheaper Canadian coal.
The tradable level for mid-volatile PHCC from Australia has been assessed at $187-190/mt FOB, according to market sources, versus the previous deal at $195.6/mt FOB. Market sources said that there is an improvement in supply of this grade as well, though prices are still supported by the Indian import market. In India, some offers for ex-Canada PHCC have been reported at $193-195/mt CFR, and so buyers are waiting for at least $180-185/mt on FOB basis for ex-Australia mid-volatile PHCC.
Also, China has come back from the holiday on a negative note and the tradable level for import PHCC is assessed at $160/mt CFR at the highest at the moment.
The SteelOrbis reference price for ex-Australia PHCC has been assessed at $188/mt FOB.