Coal Prices Largely Unchanged; Market Awaits Colombian Decision

Reuters reported that anticipation in the potential resuming of Colombian coal shipments left coal prices largely unchanged, dropping $2 a tonne to around $94, awaiting a decision which could cause prices to fall trigger a bout of selling.

As quoted in the report:

Mine workers at Colombia’s La Jagua mine, owned by Glencore’s Prodeco unit, are still on strike after 28 days, but Prodeco could start moving coal from the Calenturitas mine once the railway resumes normal operations.

So far, as much as 4 million tonnes is estimated to have been lost from Colombia’s 2012 exports, according to industry sources.

Credit Suisse commented:

Although the union is challenging the legality of the vote and will probably appeal the court decision, any reversal would likely be some months down the line, with the tighter prompt engendered by these strikes still likely to fade.

Click here to read the full Reuters report.