North American coal shipments to India rise; cuts dependence on Australia

During this year, Australia's share in India's metallurgical coal market declined to 36.91 million t.

India’s statistics were revealed a day after customs data reported that Chinese imports of Australian metallurgical coal practically halved in May from a month earlier. It comes after buyers decided to hold off on purchases due to uncertainty regarding government policy on Australian imports.

Imports of Australian metallurgical coal was at 1.38 million t in May, compared to 2.72 million t in April and 2.09 million t in the same month last year.

The Australian coal import delays – caused by extended port inspections amid Australian and Chinese trade tensions – do not seem to be lessening.

According to a Beijing-based trader: “[The] market is cooling down after a temporary enthusiasm in April, as imported coal was a lot cheaper compared to domestic metallurgical coal. But traders now worry more about uncertain policy in the coming months. […] Also, with heightened production restrictions in Northern China, demand of steel-making raw materials is expected to wane."

Yet, whilst Indonesia was the premier supplier of thermal coal to India in 2018 - 2019, Australian thermal coal imports could see a rise soon once Adani's Carmichael mine begins exporting.