US coking coal export prices fell further in the past week in the absence of Atlantic buying activity, as European steelmakers continue adopting a wait-and-see approach to spot bookings of seaborne coking coal cargoes for delivery in the coming months.
Presently, European buyers are holding back from buying metallurgical coal because they believe that prices will most likely come down further, as met coke demand may come under increasing pressure from widespread steel output cuts across Northwest Europe.
Moreover, the European market is well supplied and the majority of steel mills are well-covered by term contracts for the next few months.
With European buying slowed down, US coking coal exporters are largely focused on selling additional tonnages to Brazil and India.
Until recently, Indian buyers were actively seeking US coking coal for stocking up ahead of the monsoon season — although their restocking activities have now moderated.
Meanwhile, a growing interest in Russian coking coal has been observed lately in Europe and Asia, as certain Russian high-vols are fairly similar in quality to US high-vol brands.
PRICE ASSESSMENTS
The latest FOB US East Coast price of low-vol hard coking coal is assessed at USD 175/MT, based on 58% coke strength after reaction (CSR), 8% ash, 0.8% sulfur and 19% volatile matter material.
For Indian buyers, the above price amounts to USD 202/MT on CNF India basis, after considering a USEC-India dry bulk freight rate of USD 27/MT for delivery by Panamax vessel class.
The US high-volatile type A (HVA) coking coal price is assessed at around USD 192/MT FOB USEC, based on 7% ash, 0.85% sulfur and 32% volatile matter.
The US high-volatile type B (HVB) coking coal price is assessed at around USD 155/MT FOB USEC, based on 8% ash, 0.95% sulfur and 34% volatile matter.
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