Euro Coal Supported by Lower Colombian Imports

European physical coal prices moved broadly sideways on Wednesday as low spring time demand was offset by lower availability of Colombian imports and a Ukraine risk premium.

Cargoes for delivery in June to Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Antwerp (ARA) traded at $74.50 a tonne on the GlobalCOAL platform on Wednesday afternoon, down $0.35 from its previous settlement, but ARA cargoes for delivery in July rose by 45 cents to $75.70 per tonne.

Traders said that the small price swings were largely down to individual utility orders, but that prices were generally feeling downward pressure because of mild weather and high stocks, although the Ukraine crisis was still commanding a little risk premium.

Analysts said that the Ukraine risk premium was most visible in European coal futures contracts, where API2 2015 swaps were trading around $82.55 a tonne, close to three month highs.

Lower Colombian shipments to Europe were also supporting ARA levels.

"The Colombians are tendering into the U.S., and that means there is a slight tightness in the Atlantic basin," one coal trader said.

In South Africa, coal prices have dropped since late April as lower orders from India dented demand while the end of maintenance work at its Richards Bay terminal made more stocks available.

"The situation in South Africa has normalised and brought prices back down accordingly," the trader said.

India's coal imports fell 6 percent in April from a year ago to 15.2 million tonnes, the first dip in three months, as power and steel producers used up stocks piled up in previous months.

In Australia, traders said that the market was testing support in the low $70s following record production in the first quarter of the year and stalling Chinese demand.

Benchmark Australian cargoes for delivery in June from its Newcastle terminal were down 20 cents to $72.15 a tonne, close to most of its mining marginal costs.

(Reporting by Henning Gloystein, editing by William Hardy)