Nippon Steel president sees coking coal price holding near $285 per ton
A logo of Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corp is pictured outside its headquarters in Tokyo November 9, 2012. REUTERS/Yuriko Nakao/File Photo
Coking coal prices are expected to stay at high levels of around $285 per ton for a while, Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal Corp President Kosei Shindo said on Friday.
Japan's biggest steelmaker said earlier this week it has agreed with Glencore Plc and Teck Resources Ltd on a coking coal price for the January-March quarter of 2017 at $285 a ton, up 43 percent from the previous quarter.
"Spot coking coal prices have come down a bit after we had set a term contract price for the next quarter as expectations for even higher prices have receded," Shindo told a news conference.
"But we need to be prepared to see coking coal prices staying at high levels for a while," he added.
The price of steelmaking coal has nearly quadrupled over the past year as China cut production and reduced output at some mines.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Richard Pullin)
