What factors affect Australia's coking coal exports in Apr except weather?

sxcoal.com Viewpoint,  Price,  Coking Coal 2022-05-18 17:03:25


Australia exported 12.45 million tonnes of coking coal in April, down 5% from the previous month, according to the latest Kpler's cargo-tracking data.


Australia mainly exported coal through five ports last month – Hay Point, Gladstone and Abbot Point, Kembla and Newcastle.


Three of these ports are located in Queensland. According to their respective cargo handling, more than 90% of Australia's coking coal exports came from Queensland. Of that, 55% was exported via Hay Point.


Hay Point port is one of the largest coal export ports in the world and consists of two coal export terminals - Dalrymple Bay Coal Terminal and Hay Point Services Coal Terminal.


Kpler's data showed that coking coal exports from Hay Point port were 6.84 million tonnes in April, down 7% from the previous month. During the month, supply was affected as heavy rainfalls flooded mines and infrastructure. Meanwhile, coal miners found it hard to deliver goods due to the adverse weather and the COVID-19-led shortage of labors. As a result, the number of vessels queuing outside the Dalrymple Bay and the Hay Point terminals increased to nearly 40 in April.


In addition, the accident-induced closure of a coal mine owned by Anglo American, a major customer of the Dalrymple Bay coal terminal, also impacted supply.


According to reports, at the end of March, an accident occurred at Anglo American's Moranbah North coal mine in central Queensland, in which a 59-year-old worker died of a serious head injury while working, causing suspension of all mining activities in the mining field. Located in Bowen Basin, Queensland, the mine mainly produces hard coking coal.


This, coupled with the continued impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Anglo American has lowered its 2022 coking coal export target from 20-22 million tonnes to 17-19 million tonnes.


In April, Australia's coking coal exports overall decreased by 5% month on month. Industry analysts believe that this can also be attributed to high prices and the reduction of panic purchases caused by the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.


Although the price in April has fallen significantly from the previous record level of $670/t, it remained at a high position.


On April 29, the FOB price of Peak Downs coking coal was $518.0/t, and that of mid-volatile premium coking coal in Australia was $481.5/t. The former soared by 376% over the same period last year, while the latter surged 364%. High coal prices have weakened buyers' willingness to purchase to a certain extent.


As the Russia-Ukraine conflicts remain in a stalemate and tend to develop into a protracted matter, the panic purchasing sentiment in the market has weakened. More than one end user was reselling goods and some buyers shifted to a wait-and-see attitude due to the high volatility of the market.


For the short-term outlook, some coal miners may increase production in May-June in order to achieve their annual goals, and demand from major buyers such as India and Japan is expected to remain firm as Australian coal supplies increase.


However, market participants expect that Australia's coking coal exports in May would be constrained by weather factors, with a risk for further decline.



(Writing by Emma Yang  Editing by Tammy Yang)
For any questions, please contact us by inquiry@fwenergy.com or +86-351-7219322.

Share this article
Connect with us

Editor's Pick

1 Indonesian thermal coal prices rise on increased demand from China, India 2024-04-25

Indonesian thermal coal prices rose on April 25 due to increased interest from Chinese and Indian buyers. Yet, this price increase might not last long given the unchanged fundamentals.Chinese traders

2 Stanmore Resources to acquire interests in two met coal projects 2024-04-25

Stanmore Resources has signed agreements to acquire 100% ownership of two metallurgical coal projects, as per a statement released by the Australian coal miner.Stanmore Resources has entered into a de

3 Shaanxi's Q1 coal production flat; sales down 2.77% YoY 2024-04-25

Shaanxi province in northwest China produced 177.73 million tonnes of raw coal in the first three months of this year, maintaining the same level as the corresponding period in 2023, according to data

4 China's coking coal, coke markets firm on lower stocks 2024-04-25

China's coking coal and coke markets continued to gain support from low stocks ahead of the May Day holiday, mainly due to sustained demand from coking plants, steel mills and traders and regional sup

5 China Coal Daily Track (Apr 25) 2024-04-25

Thermal coalProduction area Thermal coal prices moved in either direction in major producing regions. Sidelined sentiment further widened along with reducing portside prices. Some miners that offered

6 China futures market updates at close (Apr 25) 2024-04-25

Check out latest updates on the Chinese futures market for coking coal, coke, iron ore and others at close.

7 CEC: China's power consumption to grow around 6% this yr 2024-04-25

China's power consumption may climb around 6% this year in a normal-weather scenario, an industry body forecast on April 24, factoring in economic growth, progressed electrification for energy use by

8 South32 coal output up 60% QoQ in Q3 FY24 2024-04-25

Australian miner South32 produced 1.41 million tonnes of coal during the third quarter of the financial year 2024 (January-March), increasing 60% from the previous quarter but falling 2% year on year,

9 Japan Mar crude steel output down 3.9% YoY 2024-04-25

Japan produced 7.2 million tonnes of crude steel in March, rising 2.9% month on month (MoM) yet down 3.9% year on year (YoY), according to data released by the Japan Iron and Steel Federation.The outp

10 Review: China Mar coking coal imports rebound amid surging Mongolian coal 2024-04-25

China's coking coal imports in March bounced back from a month ago, backed by prominent growth in Mongolian coal imports, customs data showed, with Mongolia and Russia remaining the top two suppliers.

Most Read Articles

1 Indian state ports' Mar coal imports hit 4-mth high 2024-04-23

Coal imports through India's 12 state-run ports climbed 18.93% from the previous month to 17.11 million tonnes in March, hitting a four-month high, showed the latest data from Indian Ports Association

2 China thermal coal market in figures (Apr 22) 2024-04-22

China thermal coal market key figures in focus. The latest data for thermal coal prices, stocks, shipments in major production areas, transfer ports and most followed downstream sector data.

3 QHD coal stocks rebound on port closures 2024-04-22

Coal inventories at China's major transshipment port of Qinhuangdao rebounded above 5 million tonnes again, owing to declined outbound shipments during port closures and slack coal consumption.Qinhuan

4 China's coastal coal freight rates rise amid recovered demand 2024-04-22

Freight rates for coal shipment on China's coastal sea routes experienced a notable rise during the week ending April 19 since late December 2023, supported by rebounded demand.The China Coastal Coal

5 China met coal market in figures (Apr 23) 2024-04-23

China coking coal, met coke and steel market key figures in focus.

6 Newcastle Port Mar coal exports up 10%+ MoM 2024-04-23

Newcastle port, the world's largest coal port located in Australia's New South Wales, exported 12.17 million tonnes of coal in March this year, rising 5.84% year on year and 10.76% month on month, Por

7 China futures market updates at close (Apr 22) 2024-04-22

Check out latest updates on the Chinese futures market for coking coal, coke, iron ore and others at close.

8 Infographic | China coal imports in Mar 2024 2024-04-22

Infographic | China coal imports in Mar 2024

9 Inner Mongolia Q1 raw coal output up 3.9% on yr 2024-04-23

Northern China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region registered a 3.9% year-on-year growth in raw coal output during January-March, which expanded by 1.2 percentage points from that in the first two mont

10 Russia's Kuzbass Q1 coal output down 2% on yr 2024-04-22

Coal production in Russia's key producing area of Kuzbass declined 2.0% or 1.1 million tonnes from a year earlier to 52.8 million tonnes in January-March 2024, according to the Ministry of Coal Indust