Japan Steelmakers Suffer From China Cuts as Coal Tops $200

  • Hard coking 4Q contract may increase by 51% to $140/t: WoodMac
  • About 65% of seaborne coal supplied under quarterly contract
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Japan’s steelmakers are set to pay for China’s effort to manage its coal industry as a surge in metallurgical prices flow through to quarterly supply contracts.

Spot hard coking coal has more than doubled this year to trade above $205 a metric ton and the gain will be taken into consideration when Japanese steel mills and miners negotiate a supply contract for the fourth quarter. A deal may be agreed at $140, according to Wood Mackenzie Ltd., 51 percent higher than the third-quarter accord and the highest since early 2014.