News

Illinois basin coal: Export support continues

Coal prices in the Illinois basin followed international markets higher as sellers preferred to export coal than to take lower prices in domestic sales. Prompt quarter 11,500 Btu/lb 5lb SO²/mmBtu coal climbed by 25¢/short ton to $39.35/st fob barge. Prices for third quarter deliveries of 11,800 Btu/lb 4.5lb SO2/mmBtu and 11,000 Btu/lb 6lb SO2/mmBtu coals […]

Exports give US rail coal volume a boost

US rail coal shipments have defied expectations and have remained steady, bolstered by unexpected strength in coal exports. “The export coal is doing better than we thought or anyone else thought,” CSX chief executive James Foote said on 7 June. “And it looks like it will be stronger throughout the second half of the year […]

April US coal exports surge to highest monthly total since 2013

US coal exports totaled 10.1 million mt in April, the highest monthly total since March 2013, according to new US Census data. The monthly total was up 17.7% from March and 53.3% higher than the year-ago month. Driven by strong seaborne prices, end-users are increasingly choosing to source metallurgical and thermal coal from the US. […]

Coal Soars on Rising Demand from Asia

Coal prices in Asia are being driven to multi-year highs by a rare combination of simultaneous demand growth in the region’s top four importers. Depending on the price used, thermal coal is either close to a two-year high or near the strongest in six years as China, India, Japan and South Korea imported more of […]

US coal exports reach 5-year high

US coal exports climbed to a five-year high in April on trade with relatively new customers. Shipments rose to just under 11.1mn short tons (10.1mn metric tonnes) from 7.24mn st a year earlier, according to US Census Bureau data released today. The last time exports were higher was in March 2013, when they totaled 13.6mn […]

Hampton Roads coal exports inch back from recent highs

Coal exports out of Hampton Roads, Virginia, retreated from April’s four-year high last month but remained higher than 2017 levels. Terminals at the port handled 3.75mn short tons (3.4mn metric tonnes) of coal for export in May, the latest data from the Virginia Maritime Association show. That was down from 4.26mn st in April, but […]

The U.S. Coal Miners That Could Gain From More Chinese Business

China’s offering to buy more American goods in an attempt to shrink its trade deficit with the U.S., according to two people familiar with the matter. Last week, the country was said to be specifically looking at bringing in more coal from West Virginia. If China’s serious about importing more of America’s coal — a […]

Could China Save the Coal Industry?

China may soon be buying a lot more coal from the United States as part of a larger plan to narrow its trade deficit with Washington, according to reporting by Bloomberg. The coal would largely be sourced from West Virginia in what would be a major boon for the state’s ailing economy. Last month China […]

Bullish outlook for US thermal coal export market, European arbitrage open: Xcoal

The US thermal coal export market is set to thrive in 2018 owing to higher global prices, specifically a favorable arbitrage into Europe, the president of US trading company Xcoal said at an industry gathering Monday. “The US [coal] industry is alive again,” Xcoal president and chief commercial officer Jack Porco said in a speech […]

Why shipping coal to Asia makes ecological sense

It may seem counterintuitive, but building the proposed coal-exporting shipping terminal, Millennium Bulk Terminals-Longview facility, can reduce global greenhouse gases by making U.S. coal readily available to Asia. The state Department of Ecology’s final environmental impact statement for the Millennium coal export facility validates this point. Unfortunately, the details were buried in the appendices, where […]