Firm trend in S African, Australian steam coal prices
30 Apr 2015
April 30: A firm trend prevailed in South African and Australian steam coal prices on April 29 on short covering by traders taking a cue from a firmness in crude oil prices and a firmness in the Euro, market sources said.
Australian steam coal prices inched up by $0.20 per ton whereas standard South African prices gained more than $0.75 per ton, they added.
However, Indonesian rates remained under the weather, prompting industry experts to suggest that the country needs to reduce its production volumes to reverse the softening trend in prices, they said.
Following are the indicative prices of coal in various markets and indicative freight rates on April 29:
Description of Coal |
Specification |
Price/ton (in $ and FOB) |
||||
As on, |
As on, |
Week ago, |
6-month ago, |
Year ago, |
||
April 29, 2015 |
April 28, 2015 |
April 22, 2015 |
October 30, 2014 |
April 30, 2014 |
||
South African Steam Coal |
6000 Kcal/kg NAR |
62.50 |
61.75 |
60.50 |
65.50 |
77.30 |
South African Steam Coal |
5500 Kcal/kg NAR |
52.00 |
52.00 |
51.70 |
57.00 |
70.00 |
Australian Steam Coal |
6300 Kcal/kg GAR |
64.50 |
64.30 |
62.20 |
62.25 |
73.00 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
5900 Kcal/kg GAR |
57.00 |
57.00 |
57.00 |
61.25 |
66.80 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
5000 Kcal/kg GAR |
45.10 |
45.10 |
45.60 |
48.50 |
55.40 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
4200 Kcal/kg GAR |
32.20 |
32.30 |
32.40 |
35.75 |
37.20 |
Indonesian Steam Coal |
3800 Kcal/kg GAR |
25.60 |
25.60 |
25.90 |
29.50 |
31.60 |
Hard Coking Coal (Australian) |
VM-20.7%, Ash-10.5% |
85.00 |
85.50 |
90.00 |
109.50 |
113.50 |
Premium Low Vol |
VM-21.5%, Ash-9.3% |
84.25 |
84.50 |
89.00 |
107.50 |
112.25 |
Semi Soft |
67.00 |
67.00 |
69.50 |
77.00 |
80.50 |
|
Met Coke (CFR India) |
165.00 |
170.00 |
170.00 |
197.00 |
218.00 |
Freight rates:
Destination
|
(in $/ton) |
||||
As on |
As on |
Week ago, |
6-month ago, |
Year ago, |
|
April 29, 2015 |
April 28, 2015 |
April 22, 2015 |
October 30, 2014 |
April 30, 2014 |
|
South Africa (RBCT) to India (West Coast) |
9.30 |
9.40 |
9.50 |
16.25 |
14.50 |
South Africa (RBCT) to India (East Coast) |
9.10 |
9.20 |
9.30 |
16.80 |
15.40 |
Indonesia (Kalimantan) to India (West Coast) |
5.90 |
5.90 |
6.00 |
11.70 |
9.50 |
Indonesia (Kalimantan) to India (East Coast) |
5.00 |
5.00 |
5.00 |
10.20 |
8.50 |
Australia to India |
9.20 |
9.20 |
9.25 |
17.00 |
- |
Source: traders and ICMW database