Australia's Newcastle Thermal-Coal Prices Steady at 8-Week High

By Jesse Riseborough

Jan. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Power-station coal prices at Australia's Newcastle port, a benchmark for Asia, were little changed last week at an eight-week high as a drop in exports of the fuel reduced supplies.

The weekly index for power-station coal prices at the New South Wales port rose 2 cents to $81.46 a metric ton in the week ended yesterday, according to the globalCOAL NEWC Index. The index traded between $76.09 and $81.46 in the last eight weeks.

The price has tumbled 58 percent from a July record as the global recession and slowing economic growth in China, the biggest coal consumer, curb demand from utilities. Coal shipments from Newcastle fell 28 percent last week.

Xstrata Plc, the world's largest exporter of power-station coal, BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group are among mining companies that ship coal through Newcastle.

Contract prices for thermal coal in the year that started April 1, 2008, more than doubled to $125 a ton. Prices may fall 40 percent to $75 a ton for the year starting April 1 as demand from Chinese utilities wanes, Macquarie Group Ltd. said in an e- mailed report today.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jesse Riseborough in Melbourne at jriseborough@bloomberg.net