Metallurgical coke prices continue to remain well supported on tight supplies in China, as steel mills have accepted the 15th round of price uptick proposed by coking plants.
CoalMint assessed the latest price for domestic met coke with 12.5% ash in North China at CNY 2,920/t ($457.44/t), up CNY 100/t ($13.99/t) on the week.
Trading activity likely to slow but outlook on coke market still positive—
Mixed sentiments were observed in the spot market of coke as some mills in Shanxi province proposed to lower CNY 100/t on coke purchase price, while coking enterprises in Hebei, Jiangsu, Shanxi and Shandong proposed the 15th round of price hike by CNY 100/t.
Steel mills, however, are still showing active interest in procuring coke supplies considering the hassles of interrupted logistics in Hebei province amid Covid concerns, the stockpiling need as Spring Festival approaches, and the possible snowy weather prevailing thereafter, boosting optimism amongst coke enterprises.
A few local coking coal producing collieries in Shanxin and Inner Mongolia are already on holiday, while collieries in Shanxi’s Lvliang, Jinzhong and Taiyuan will stop operation in early February. However, most state-owned collieries will remain operational during the upcoming holidays.
As for imported coal, the daily passage of vehicles at the Mongolia border witnessed a notable increase.
Meanwhile, United States and Canadian spot coking coal prices could remain strong during the first half of 2021 as trade tensions between China and Australia continue, boosting those origins, while Australian shippers seek customers in Europe and Latin America.
Chinese buyers including traders and end users are likely to wait until post-Spring Festival to resume full-scale trading activities.
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By Aditya Sinha
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