At the end of the month, the PRC imported 4,13 million tons of coking coal, which is 34% less than in June of the previous year, but 21% more than in May, the Chinese customs reported.
In January-June, imports of coking coal fell by 42% in annual terms, to 22,28 million tons. Since December, coal from Australia has not been supplied due to a ban by the Chinese authorities.
Coal imports from the United States increased in June to 938 thousand tons, which is three times more than in June 2020. Canadian imports of raw materials amounted to 888,179 thousand tons, which is twice as much as in June last year.
Premium grades of hard coking coal with low volatiles content, supplied to China on CFR terms, renewed its 4-year price maximum on June 30, having risen in price by 11% versus May, to $305 per ton.
At the same time, the cost of the same coal on fob terms in Australia grew by 25% to $189 per ton.
Supplies of coking coal from Mongolia increased in June compared to May by 6%, to 846 thousand tons, not exceeding 1 million tons for the third month in a row.
The supply restrictions are due to an increase in the incidence of coronavirus infection in some border regions, which has led to a decrease in the number of coal trucks crossing the border between countries.
