* July index trades equate to around $93/T
* ARA stockpiles higher than year-ago levels
LONDON, April 23 (Reuters) – European prompt physical coal
prices were little changed on Monday but two Q3 DES ARA trades
took place at over $3.00 a tonne below the API2 index, a level
which some players took as a bearish signal.
July DES ARA cargoes were valued at around $96.50 a tonne on
Monday at the time the index-linked trades went through, valuing
them at around $93.00, traders said.
“This doesn’t bode well for Q3 prices if anybody’s willing
to sell at that kind of a discount now,” one trader said.
Stockpiles in Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Antwerp are significantly
higher than year-ago levels, which will help cap any price rises
during the next several months.
EMO, EBS and OBA stockpiles were over 5.6 million tonnes at
the end of last week, with a further 2-3 million in smaller
terminals.
Most of this coal was pre-bought by utilities and traders
who believe the market contango justifies carrying stocks until
the winter, when consumption and prices are expected to be
stronger but the size of inventories has got to be a
disincentive to buy fresh cargoes, they said.
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