Tue Jun 14, 2011 10:18pm GMT
SYDNEY, June 15 (Reuters) - Australia's Macarthur Coal has accepted a big price cut on its pulverised coal injection (PCI) coal, which values its chief product at a deep discount compared to hard coking coal due to weak Japanese demand, the Australian Financial Review said.
Macarthur's third-quarter PCI coal prices were settled at $230 a tonne, down from $275 a tonne while hard coking coal prices, supported by Chinese demand, were reduced to $315 a tonne from $330 a tonne, the paper said on Wednesday without citing its sources.
Metallurgical coal prices surged earlier this year after extensive floods in eastern Australia shut mines and reduced production but prices have inched down as mines come back to full production and the Japanese earthquake reduced demand.
Australia is by far the world's biggest coking coal producer, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the global trade.
PCI coal is crushed into a fine powder and injected into blast furnaces as a replacement for coke in the production of pig iron.
Last month Macarthur, the world's biggest supplier of PCI coal for the sea borne market, said it was closely monitoring market conditions in Japan, which has been hurt by the tsunami and earthquake in March.
Macarthur officials could not be reached immediately for comment by Reuters. (Reporting by Narayanan Somasundaram; Editing by Balazs Koranyi, sourced Thomson Reuters)
SYDNEY, June 15 (Reuters) - Australia's Macarthur Coal has accepted a big price cut on its pulverised coal injection (PCI) coal, which values its chief product at a deep discount compared to hard coking coal due to weak Japanese demand, the Australian Financial Review said.
Macarthur's third-quarter PCI coal prices were settled at $230 a tonne, down from $275 a tonne while hard coking coal prices, supported by Chinese demand, were reduced to $315 a tonne from $330 a tonne, the paper said on Wednesday without citing its sources.
Metallurgical coal prices surged earlier this year after extensive floods in eastern Australia shut mines and reduced production but prices have inched down as mines come back to full production and the Japanese earthquake reduced demand.
Australia is by far the world's biggest coking coal producer, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the global trade.
PCI coal is crushed into a fine powder and injected into blast furnaces as a replacement for coke in the production of pig iron.
Last month Macarthur, the world's biggest supplier of PCI coal for the sea borne market, said it was closely monitoring market conditions in Japan, which has been hurt by the tsunami and earthquake in March.
Macarthur officials could not be reached immediately for comment by Reuters. (Reporting by Narayanan Somasundaram; Editing by Balazs Koranyi, sourced Thomson Reuters)
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