According to the vessel line-up data compiled by CoalMint Research, coal import shipments taken by Pakistan have attained a 4-month high total during Jul’19, following an uptick in demand from power and cement sectors.
Imports were marked 26% higher on the month at 1,274,853 MT in Jul’19 compared with 1,010,894 MT in Jun’19. Notably, coal purchases by cement sector increased nearly 140% M-o-M to 363,803 MT in Jul’19, after witnessing a series of decline since Apr’19.
However, over the course of 7-month period of CY19 (Jan-Jul’19), Pakistan’s import have totaled 8,256,521 MT; down 10% Y-o-Y from 9,141,743 MT in the corresponding period of CY18.
In fact, a hefty fall of 35% Y-o-Y was seen during Jul’19, assessed from the imports of 1,946,638 MT coal recorded in the year-ago month.
Despite the heavy investment made in power sector under CPEC which were expected to boost imports, Pakistan had been facing financial difficulties regarding the plants’ operation due to rising debt and soaring cost of imported coal.
Beside, a slack coal demand from cement sector was seen as a result of an inferior sales volume. Posing further threat to the cement industry, the government’s decision to terminate bilateral trades with India is likely to affect part of cement sales which were exported to India.
Major Coal Suppliers:
For the past few months, Pakistan has limited its imported coal sourcing from South African and Indonesian markets. In fact, the last coal shipment, noted from origin other than these, was recorded from Mozambique back in Apr’19.
During the month of Jul’19, intake from both Indonesia and South Africa had increased m-o-m. Coal supplies from South Africa moved up 11% M-o-M to 952,890 MT, while imports from Indonesia doubled to 321,963 MT in the period.
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