SEOUL: South Korea monthly thermal coal imports in January fell to a five-month low of 7.45 million mt, down 11% year-on-year and 13% on the previous month, mainly due to falls in volumes from major suppliers Indonesia and Australia, according to customs data released Friday.
The import total was split between 7.21 million mt of bituminous coal and 241,317 mt of sub-bituminous material.
January volumes from Indonesia fell 20% on the month and 6% on the year to 2.71 million mt, while Australian deliveries were 2.75 million mt, off 25% on the month and 26% lower on the corresponding 2014 period.
Russian thermal imports increased 36% on the month and 89% on the year to 1.6 million mt, the highest intake for five months.
South Korea imported 92.74 million mt of thermal coal in 2014, a 1% year-on-year increase, with higher volumes from Australia and Russia offsetting a slight decline in Indonesian shipments.
