Coal prices firm up on last working day of February
03 Mar 2014
March 3: The continuous decline in spot coal prices, particularly of the South African variety, was halted on the last working day of February as buying support emerged at lower levels, industry sources said.
The surge in prices on February 28 indicated that prices are unlikely to fall further from current levels amidst increased buying enquiries, they added.
On February 28, ICMW had reported that there is not much scope for further decline in prices of South African coal.
Meanwhile, Indonesian steam coal prices remained largely unchanged on reduced enquiries from major buyers, including Indian companies, as freight rates firmed up sharply, sources said.
Following are the indicative prices of coal in various markets and indicative freight rates on February 28:
Description of Coal
|
Specification |
Price/ton (in $ and FOB) as on Feb 28, 2014 |
Price/ton (in $ and FOB) as on Feb 27, 2014 |
Week Ago Price/ton (in $ and FOB) Feb 21, 2014 |
6-month ago Price/ton (in $ and FOB) Aug 29, 2013 |
Year Ago Price/ton (in $ and FOB) Mar 01, 2013 |
South African Steam Coal |
6000 Kcal/kg NAR |
75.50 |
74.50 |
78.00 |
70.80 |
84.75 |
South African Steam Coal |
5500 Kcal/kg NAR |
63.90 |
62.80 |
63.50 |
62.25 |
NA |
Australian Steam Coal |
6300 Kcal/kg GAR |
77.75 |
77.25 |
78.00 |
76.25 |
93.75 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
5900 Kcal/kg GAR |
70.00 |
69.80 |
70.00 |
69.00 |
76.00 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
5000 Kcal/kg GAR |
56.25 |
56.40 |
56.75 |
57.00 |
60.10 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
4200 Kcal/kg GAR |
38.20 |
38.25 |
38.00 |
41.00 |
41.30 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
3800 Kcal/kg GAR |
32.00 |
32.00 |
32.00 |
35.50 |
35.10 |
Hard Coking Coal (Australian) |
VM-20.7%, Ash-10.5% |
121.00 |
121.50 |
125.00 |
148.00 |
168.00 |
Premium Low Vol |
VM-21.5%, Ash-9.3% |
119.50 |
120.00 |
123.00 |
147.00 |
167.50 |
Semi Soft |
|
83.75 |
84.00 |
87.00 |
102.50 |
119.50 |
Met Coke (CFR India) |
|
246.00 |
250.00 |
253.00 |
260.00 |
300.00 |
Freight Rate:
Destination
|
As on Feb 28, 2014 (in $/ton) |
As on Feb 27, 2014 (in $/ton) |
Week Ago Feb 21, 2014 (in $/ton) |
6-month Ago Aug 29, 2013 (in $/ton) |
Year Ago Mar 01, 2013 (in $/ton) |
South Africa (RBCT) to India (West Coast) |
17.00 |
16.70 |
16.50 |
14.70 |
15.10 |
South Africa (RBCT) to India (East Coast) |
17.50 |
17.25 |
17.00 |
15.25 |
16.10 |
Indonesia (Kalimantan) to India (West Coast) |
11.40 |
11.00 |
10.80 |
10.10 |
9.80 |
Indonesia (Kalimantan) to India (East Coast) |
10.00 |
9.80 |
9.60 |
8.90 |
8.80 |
Australia to India |
18.00 |
17.75 |
17.75 |
16.50 |
15.50 |
Source: Traders & ICMW data base