China’s coastal coal freights took an upturn in week to October 17

Freight rates for shipping coal from northern China’s Qinhuangdao port to the other Chinese ports of Zhangjiagang, Shanghai and Guangzhou in eastern and southern China took an upturn in the week to Tuesday, port operator Qinhuangdao Port said.

The freight rate from Qinhuangdao to Zhangjiagang in eastern China’s Jiangsu province for 20,000-30,000 mt capacity vessels rose by Yuan 5.40 week on week to Yuan 53.30/mt ($8.05/mt) on Tuesday, Qinhuangdao Port said.

The rate from Qinhuangdao to Shanghai in eastern China for vessels with a capacity of 40,000-50,000 mt jumped by Yuan 7.0 week on week to Yuan 47.20/mt. The rate from Qinhuangdao to Guangzhou in southern China for 50,000-60,000 mt capacity vessels rose by Yuan 5.90/mt week on week to Yuan 56.80/mt.

The recovering purchase activities of the downstream power plants have resulted in the rise in coastal freights, the port operator said, adding that coastal freights may go up further as the temperature continues to go down in southern and eastern China.

Coal stocks at Qinhuangdao port were 7.09 million mt on Tuesday, up from 6.935 million mt a week earlier, port figures showed.