Coking Coal offers have jumped to USD 241/MT FoB Australia as exports shrunk after most producers in Australia, including the big ones—BHP Billiton and Glencore, declaring force majeure on coal supplies.
The supplies are hit due to the damaged rail system, caused by the Debbie cyclone.
It is estimated that the huge landslides on the railway tracks of the Goonyella rail line will take at least five weeks to be cleared. The blockade of coal transportation will disrupt 15 to 20 MnT of Coking Coal exports. The Queensland region, which was hit by the cyclone, is the world’s largest Coking Coal export region.
As a consequence of the supply disruption in Australia, Coking Coal futures in the Dalian Commodity Exchange of China rose by 8.5% to Yuan 1,376/MT( for May delivery).
According to market rumors, Chinese steel makers are looking at the Russian and Mongolian markets for sourcing Coking Coal due to the ongoing supply disruption in Australia. The duration of 30 to 40 days required for shipping Coking Coal from USA to China is posing concerns among the Chinese steel makers that is why they are considering the nearby markets—Russia and Mongolia.
Yesterday, the price was assessed at USD 182.50/MT FoB Australia.
Source: CoalMint Research
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