Weekly Alert | China thermal coal market in stalemate, will peak-season rally emerge?
China's portside thermal coal market enters a stalemate late this week after rebounding from multi-year low. Will a peak-season rally emerge in Jul?
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China's portside thermal coal market in stalemate; import low-CV momentum eases
China's portside thermal coal transactions remained sluggish on July 3 due to a mismatch between cautious buyers and firm sellers, despite rising power demand from high temperatures in some regions.
Will China's thermal coal see a peak-season rally in Jul?
Thermal coal prices may potentially rally in China this month, primarily driven by an anticipated surge in power consumption from air-conditioning use.
Traders test higher prices of import Mongolian coking coal at Chinese border ports
Trading activities of Mongolian coking coal improved mildly at key Chinese border crossings last week, lifted by a rally in the futures market and tighter supply from Inner Mongolia.
China's domestic thermal coal supply rises 4.5% MoM in May
China's domestic thermal coal supply witnessed a month-on-month increase in May 2025, while experiencing a slight year-on-year contraction, the latest Sxcoal data showed.
China May hydropower output in steeper YoY decline on low water inflows
Despite increased national precipitation in May, China's hydropower generation continued to decline year-on-year at an accelerated rate.
Global thermal coal demand to lag behind expectations by 2027
Global thermal coal demand is projected to fall short of previous expectations over the next two years, primarily driven by slower global economic growth.
Indonesia's high-CV coal HBA price posts marked growth in H1 Jul; others in drops
Indonesia's latest benchmark coal reference prices or the HBAs (Harga Batubara Acuan) for the first half of July were in mixed trends, with the high-CV grade seeing a notable increase.
Russia to maintain coal exports to China at 100 Mt in 2025, deputy energy minister
Russia intends to maintain coal exports to China at around 100 million tonnes in 2025, flat compared with the 2024 level, and plans to increase shipments from 2026, state-run Tass reported.
India extends import curbs on low-ash met coke to shield domestic industry
In a continued effort to protect domestic industry and manage trade flows, the Indian government has extended quantitative restrictions on the import of low-ash metallurgical coke.
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Data watch
Sxcoal has summaried the latest official coal import/export updates as follows:
China - May 2025
Chinese Taiwan - May 2025
Vietnam - May 2025
Mongolia - May 2025
Japan - May 2025
South Korea - May 2025
Thailand - May 2025
South Africa - May 2025
Colombia - Apr 2025
Turkey - May 2025
Indonesia - Apr 2025
Australia - Apr 2025
India - Apr 2025
Germany - Apr 2025
Canada - Apr 2025