Traders largely stayed away from the over-the-counter coal market Wednesday, though a number of options trades went through.
Several deals were considered, but the parties could not agree on prices, said a broker.
There were no deals heard in the physical market Wednesday. The one non-option trade cleared was a Central Appalachia CSX financial Q1 2015 deal, which went through at $60.85/st for 5,000 st/month.
Platts assessed the July physical CAPP CSX (12,500 Btu/lb) contract at $59.50/st, down 50 cents from Tuesday. The contract fell on lower bids and offers reported by brokers.
The July physically-settled CAPP barge contract (12,000 Btu/lb) was assessed Wednesday at $61.60/st, up 10 cents from Tuesday, based on broker marks.
The July Powder River Basin 8,800 Btu/lb contract was assessed at $12.10/st, down 5 cents from Tuesday, extending a decline that began June 17, when July was assessed at $13/st.
Among Wednesday's options deals was a call for the Q4 2014 CAPP CSX financial contract at a strike price of $62.50/st for 15 cents/st for 5,000 st/month. The trade was repeated a short while later with the same term and strike price but at 20 cents/st.
In the PRB financial market, a Q4 2014 put option for a strike price of $12.75/st for 30 cents/st for 5,000 st/month cleared early, followed by two Cal 16 call option trades.
The first was at a strike price of $17/st at 55 cents/st for 30,000 st/month. The second was also at a strike price of $17/st and 55 cents/st, but for 10,000 st/month.
In the seaborne market Wednesday, Platts assessed the price of US Eastern coal FOB Hampton Roads (roughly 12,200 Btu/lb, or 6,500 kcal/kg NAR) at $76.75/mt, down 25 cents from Tuesday.
The European-delivered CIF ARA benchmark rose marginally on Wednesday, to $71.10/mt, up 10 cents from Tuesday, on reaction to possible export disruptions from Colombia.
Three 50,000 mt multi-origin destination Rotterdam cargoes with US optionality traded through the globalCOAL screen: an August deal at $71.20/mt, 5 cents lower than on Tuesday; a September cargo at $72.40/mt, up 20 cents; and an October trade at $74.20/mt, down 80 cents from the last October trade on June 16.
In the US gas market, the NYMEX July natural gas futures contract settled 1.8 cents higher at $4.553/MMBtu Wednesday as the market consolidated ahead of Thursday's government storage report and the prompt-month rollover.
Most analysts are expecting an injection in the 102-106 Bcf range in Thursday's US Energy Information Administration gas storage report, which would mark the seventh straight week of triple-digit builds.
Such an injection would be above both last year's 94-Bcf build and the 81-Bcf five-year average.
