- PHCC bookings from Australia heard concluded
- India’s met coke prices decline to 5-month low
BigMint’s premium hard coking coal (PHCC) index was assessed at $212/tonne (t) CNF Paradip, India, on 31 May 2025, down by $2 against the last calculation released on 15 May. Active deals of Australian-origin cargoes kept the index largely range-bound.
Around 40,000 t of prime coking coal from Goonyella was booked by a mill based in west India earlier this week at $214/t CFR for June shipment. Another deal for 40,000 t of Australian PHCC was concluded towards last weekend at similar price levels by a south India-based mill.
“No offers for Russian non-prime coking coal cargoes were heard in the Indian market, while Canadian standard cargo offers were heard in the range of $180-195/t CFR India,” said a buyer in conversation with BigMint.
Rationale
BigMint’s coking coal index is derived using data points, i.e., trades, offers, bids, and indicative prices. Two deals were recorded during the publishing window. Hence, this category was not considered for index computation and given a weightage of 50%.
Eleven (11) firm offers, bids, and indicative prices were heard. Out of these, nine (09) were considered for price calculation and given 50% weightage.
Factors impacting imported coking coal prices
1. India’s met coke prices decline to 5-month low – India’s metallurgical coke (met coke) market continued to witness a consistent decline in prices, driven primarily by subdued demand and an absence of active trade. BigMint’s latest assessments show that 25-90 mm blast furnace (BF) grade coke prices fell to INR 31,500/t ex-Jajpur, marking a w-o-w decline of INR 800/t. Jajpur prices have hit a five-month low.
2. China’s coke prices dip on oversupply, weak demand – China’s met coke market faced pressure as steel mills cut prices by up to RMB 55/t ($8) due to weak demand and high inventories, totalling a RMB 100-110/t ($14-15) drop in May. Producers plan output cuts to stabilise the market amid oversupply.
3. India’s coking coal imports to remain stable m-o-m in May – India’s coking coal imports rose by 6% to 5 million tonnes (mnt) in April from 4.7 mnt in March. The increase was supported by higher shipments from key suppliers such as Australia and Mozambique, though volumes from the US and Russia saw slight declines. Considering the arrivals so far, India’s coking coal import volumes are likely to remain rangebound at around 4.8 mnt in May.
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