India’s metallurgical (met) coke import prices continued with the upward trend this week, amidst continued tightness in global supply and increasing coking coal prices.
Prices of the Japan-origin, 64% CSR seaborne met coke advanced moderately on a CNF India basis owing to robust demand globally and the worldwide met coke price rise.
CoalMint-assessed price of the above category is at $587/tonne (t) CNF India, up $5/t (4.2%) on a weekly basis.
Coking coal supply tightness
The ongoing environmental restrictions and safety inspections resulted in a significantly low output of coking coal in China, explaining the domestic supply tightness and low inventory of the same.
Demand, however, stayed firm despite steel mills curbing production.The Shanxi Antai Group, a major met coke producer in North China, has declined to reduce met coke prices owing to high coking coal prices, low production and robust demand.
Apart from China’s unofficial ban on Australian coals, declining imports from Mongolia, a major met coke supplier to China due to rising Covid-19 cases, is another reason for lesser availability of met coke in the country.
Prolonged shortages of both domestic and imported coking coal in China therefore affected its own met coke inventory and increased the supply tightness. Simultaneously, supplies from other Asian economies – Japan, Poland, Indonesia and South Korea – are meeting the increased import demands from China resulting in a global supply tightness in met coke.
The latest prices of domestic met coke, with 12.5% ash content, in North China, are assessed at RMB 4,396/t ($681/t), up by RMB 535.81/t ($83/t) m-o-m.
Consistency in Columbian nut coke exports
Supply of India-delivered Columbian ultra-low phosphorus (ULP) nut coke, consumed by ferro chrome producers, is consistent with moderate rise in prices. The material is being quoted at $530-540/t CNF India, up $10/t w-o-w, as confirmed by a major trading source.
Outlook
Indian landed prices of met coke are expected to see further increases since coking coal prices are soaring.
The absence of China from the export market, its low domestic inventory of coking coal and high imports are fueling the global met coke price surge and will cause its prices to stay at elevated levels going forward.
Indian met coke importers are expected to rely more on the lower priced domestic material. Consequently, it is expected that the global coking coal price surge would slow down procurement and only be limited to large met coke manufacturers in the country.
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