Market overview from globalCoal for January 03

Today saw a quiet start to the year, with little physical tonnes traded. Feb DES tonnes were best seen 109.25/110.00, much lower than last week's trade at $113.00. Richards Bay interest was also limited, with Feb at 104.50/106.00, while March was 104.25/105.50 while a Feb index deal was heard at -0.50 to the index. Oil posted a very buoyant start to the week on the back of political tension between Iran and the US, with front month Brent crude climbing $3.33/bbl near close of play, to sit at $110.71/bbl. Stocks were also generally higher, with positive Chinese economic data cited as an attributing factor.

Coal market kicked off the new year on a quiet note while some countries such as China and Japan are on holiday till tomorrow. Participants in Asia are also waiting to take their cue from the European session. On a positive note, Qld seems to have avoided heavy rains that disrupted mining last January and production level has picked up following the explosive issues earlier. On the Indo side, participants reported that offers of 53/51 adb ~ $ 47/mt and 4200 gar ~ $56/mt are being shown. (*)