During the week ending June 9, metallurgical coke prices in the Chinese domestic market have been mostly stable, though with a slight decline in prices seen in Pingdingshan, Henan Province, while transaction activity in the overall market has been at low levels. As of June 9, coke futures contract (1709) offers at Dalian Commodity Exchange closed at RMB 1,417/mt ($208/mt), up $4/mt week on week. Average coke prices in the local Chinese market are presented in the following table.
During the given week, domestic finished steel prices have softened, while at the same time steelmakers' inventories of coke are on the high side and so they have not been inclined to buy in new coke supplies. Coking plants' capacity utilization rates have been at relatively high levels and they have been under more pressure to increase their sales. Meanwhile, coking coal prices have declined slightly, weakening the support for coke prices from the cost side. On the other hand, coke futures prices in China have edged up slightly, providing some support for coke prices. It is thought that coke prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely edge down in the coming week, as the rainy weather anticipated in most regions of China will negatively affect demand.
| Product name | Specification | Place of origin | Price (RMB/mt) | Price ($/mt) | Weekly change (RMB/mt) |
| Coke | Second grade | Hancheng, Shaanxi | 1,600 | 235 | 0 |
| Zibo, Shandong | 1,650 | 243 | 0 | ||
| Pingdingshan, Henan | 1,625 | 239 | ↓40 | ||
| Tangshan | 1,680 | 247 | 0 | ||
| Huaibei, Anhui | 1,800 | 265 | 0 | ||
| Average | 1,671 | 246 | ↓8 |
17 percent VAT is included in all prices and all prices are ex-warehouse.
$1 = RMB 6.80
