JFE Steel settles 1Q semi-soft contract at $131/t fob

Japan's JFE Steel has agreed to a first-quarter 2019 contract price of $131/t fob Australia for semi-soft coking coal with Indonesian producer Adaro and Australian mining firm Stanmore Coal.

The settlement price was for an Adaro semi-soft product from Kalimantan in Indonesia and for the Issac Plains semi-soft brand from Stanmore, sources close to the negotiations said. It was not known if there was any progress on negotiations with Australian producer Glencore and Chinese-backed Yancoal.

Rival Japanese steel producer Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal are currently still in negotiations for fourth-quarter 2018 semi-soft prices.

JFE's January-March semi-soft settlement price is just $1/t higher than the company's previous settlement of $130/t fob with Stanmore Coal for October-December 2018.

source: Argus Media