* April DES ARA trades at $1.50 below swaps
* S.African supply for Feb/Mar tightening
LONDON Jan 27 (Reuters) – A rise in oil, European
power values and tight prompt supply of South African coal
pushed coal swaps and physical prices higher by around 50 cents
to $1.00 U.S. a tonne on Friday.
But prices could start to sag again and dip towards $100 if
China stays out of the spot market for another few weeks after
the end of the Lunar New Year holidays, traders and utilities
said.
Brent crude held above $111 as a move from Iran to stop
exports to the European Union intensified worries about security
of supply while European spot power prices were lifted by
forecasts of a cold weather snap and lower wind power supply
.
“Europe is extremely quiet but we’re sold out for February
and March and still getting calls from buyers outside Europe who
are nothing to do with China,” one European trader said.
March loading South African cargoes were bid and offered at
around $109.00 a tonne FOB Richards Bay on Friday, up 50 cents
from the previous day.
A February South African cargo was offered at $107.00 –
$1.00 below API4 coal swaps – by an Asia-based trader which does
cannot deal with a wide range of counterparties.
TRADES
An April delivery DES ARA cargo traded at $1.50 a tonne below
the API2 index.
Continued…
