During the week ending March 22, local coke prices in China have continued their downtrend, but, with the expected improvement in demand shortly, the downtrend may come to a halt next week.
First-grade coke prices in Tangshan are at RMB 1,980/mt ($279/mt) ex-warehouse, moving down by another RMB 110/mt ($15.5/mt) compared to March 15, according to SteelOrbis’ data.
Prices of coke in local markets in China
|
Product Name |
Specification |
Place of Origin |
Price（RMB/mt） |
Price ($/mt) |
Weekly Change（RMB/mt） |
Weekly Change（$/mt） |
|
Coke |
First grade （A<13.0,S<0.75,CSR>65.0） |
Hancheng, Shaanxi |
1,940 |
273.2 |
-110.0 |
-15.6 |
|
Zibo, Shandong |
2,130 |
300.0 |
-110.0 |
-15.6 |
||
|
Pingdingshan, Henan |
1,980 |
278.9 |
-110.0 |
-15.6 |
||
|
Tangshan |
1,980 |
278.9 |
-110.0 |
-15.6 |
||
|
Huaibei, Anhui |
2,030 |
285.9 |
-110.0 |
-15.6 |
||
|
Average |
2,012 |
283.4 |
-110.0 |
-15.6 |
including 13 percent VAT
During the given week, coke prices in the Chinese domestic market have moved down further, resulting in losses for coking plants. The continuous declines in coke prices have made coking plants unwilling to produce, easing the pressure from the supply side to a certain degree. Inventory of coke has been at a relatively low level, which will bolster prices in the near future. At the same time, finished steel prices have indicated a rebounding trend amid the rises in ferrous metal futures prices, which will increase the demand for coke. It is expected that coke prices in the Chinese domestic market will likely move sideways in the coming week.
On March 22, offer prices of coke CSR65 in the export market have been at $305/mt FOB, stable over the past week after the declines in previous weeks.
The tradable level for import premium hard coking coal in China has been at $250/mt CFR, down $30/mt over the past week amid oversupply.
As of March 22, coking coal futures at Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) are standing at RMB 1,665.5/mt ($235/mt), increasing by RMB 101/mt ($14.2/mt) or 6.5 percent since March 15, while up 2.37 percent compared to the previous trading day, March 21. Meanwhile, coke futures prices at Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) are standing at RMB 2,185.5/mt ($308/mt), increasing by RMB 44.5/mt ($6.3/mt) or 2.1 percent since March 15, while up 0.6 percent compared to the previous trading day, March 21.
$1 = RMB 7.1004