During the week ending May 22, import coking coal quotations in China have edged up slightly amid less supply arriving at Chinese ports, firm demand and higher coke prices, though uncertainty regarding customs clearance restrictions has grown.
Quotations of premium hard coking coal from Australia are at $126/mt CFR China, increasing by $2/mt compared to last week. Hard coking coal prices are at $99/mt CFR, up by $1/mt week on week.
Coke prices in Tangshan are at RMB 1,750/mt ($239.6/mt) ex-warehouse, moving up by RMB 50/mt ($7.1/mt) compared to the previous week, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
During the given week, inventory of coke decreased significantly amid active purchases from steelmakers as their profitability has been good. Meanwhile, coking plants’ capacity utilization rates have decreased due to production cuts for environmental protection purposes, reducing the pressure from supply and bolstering coke prices. It is expected that coke prices in China will likely edge up slightly in the coming week.
As of Friday, May 22, coke futures prices at Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) are at RMB 1,809/mt ($255/mt), increasing by RMB 32.5/mt ($4.6/mt) or 1.8 percent compared to May 15.
$1 = RMB 7.0939