Coking Plants Reduced Output Further as Their Losses Depended Following Five Rounds of Price Cuts

SHANGHAI, Jul 29 (SMM) – The price of coking coal continued to decline yesterday amid poor downstream demand. With the fifth round of coke price cuts, the prices of some coal types may continue to be under pressure.
Coke prices recorded its fifth round of cuts. Mainstream steel mills in Shandong and Hebei lowered dry quenching coke by 240 yuan/mt and wet quenching coke by 200 yuan/mt. Many coking plants lowered their output by 30%-50% due to expanding losses. 
On the demand side, the demand for coke declined amid the suspension and maintenance of blast furnaces of steel mills. 
Despite output cuts by coking plants, severe inventory backlog of some coking plants and weaker cost support caused by falling coking coal prices, coke prices may remain under pressure.