• Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Us
  • Supplier Directory
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Logout
  • My Profile

  • CORONAVIRUS
  • LOGISTICS
    • Air Cargo
    • All Logistics
    • Express/Small Shipments
    • Facility Location Planning
    • Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
    • Global Gateways
    • Global Logistics
    • Last Mile Delivery
    • Logistics Outsourcing
    • LTL/Truckload Services
    • Ocean Transportation
    • Rail & Intermodal
    • Reverse Logistics
    • Service Parts Management
    • Transportation & Distribution
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • All Technology
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud & On-Demand Systems
    • Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • ERP & Enterprise Systems
    • Forecasting & Demand Planning
    • Global Trade Management
    • Inventory Planning/ Optimization
    • Product Lifecycle Management
    • Sales & Operations Planning
    • SC Finance & Revenue Management
    • SC Planning & Optimization
    • Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
    • Supply Chain Visibility
    • Transportation Management
  • GENERAL SCM
    • Business Strategy Alignment
    • Education & Professional Development
    • Global Supply Chain Management
    • Global Trade & Economics
    • HR & Labor Management
    • Quality & Metrics
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • SC Security & Risk Mgmt
    • Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility
  • WAREHOUSING
    • All Warehouse Services
    • Conveyors & Sortation
    • Lift Trucks & AGVs
    • Order Fulfillment
    • Packaging
    • RFID, Barcode, Mobility & Voice
    • Robotics
    • Warehouse Management Systems
  • INDUSTRIES
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Apparel
    • Automotive
    • Chemicals & Energy
    • Consumer Packaged Goods
    • E-Commerce/Omni-Channel
    • Food & Beverage
    • Healthcare
    • High-Tech/Electronics
    • Industrial Manufacturing
    • Pharmaceutical/Biotech
    • Retail
  • REGIONS
    • Asia Pacific
    • Canada
    • China
    • Europe
    • Latin America
    • Middle East/Africa
    • North America
  • THINK TANK
  • PODCASTS
  • VIDEOS
  • WHITEPAPERS
Home » Growth in Coal Market Has Been Boon to Dry Bulk Shipping Industry

Growth in Coal Market Has Been Boon to Dry Bulk Shipping Industry

June 6, 2013
Drewry's

Dry bulk trade grew by an impressive 7 percent in 2012 with steam coal proving to be the saviour of the freight market, which otherwise would have seen a complete bloodbath. Steam coal trade increased by about 18 percent from 665 million tonnes in 2011 to 784 million tonnes in 2012, supported by high availability and low prices.

The U.S. is gaining increasing importance in the steam coal export market. Increased availability of cheap natural gas means it has more thermal coal to sell in the international market. In 2012, the U.S. exported 47.4 million tonnes of thermal coal, up from 31.4 million tonnes in 2011 and 16.6 million tonnes in 2010.

Australian exports have also been on the rise, increasing to 168 million tonnes from 148 million tonnes in 2011, given the proliferation of coal mines in the country.

Indonesian exports, on the other hand, have been steadily declining. From as high as 181 million tonnes in 2010, Indonesian thermal coal exports dropped to 131 million tonnes in 2012. Struggling with shrinking profit margins in the international market, Indonesian traders are shifting their focus towards the domestic market.

Colombia has faced disruption to its coal supply resulting from a ban on night-time railing through urban areas for most of February. There was also a ban on coal loading at Drummond and strikes at Cerrejon's mines. Furthermore, a bomb attack derailed 17 of Cerrejon's coal wagons. This resulted in as much as 5 million tonnes of output being lost. Production is expected to recover from the second quarter of the year.

Of all the bulk commodities in the dry bulk sector, steam coal has the brightest outlook. Steam coal trade is expected to keep rising, driven more by abundant supply than high demand. High availability of coal will keep prices low enough to ensure steep increases in imports. Moreover, freight rates are not expected to recover by much in the next few years, which will further cap CIF prices, thereby supporting buying. Despite having a strong mandate favouring greener fuels, low prices have persuaded Europe to switch to coal.

India and China are expected to drive growth in coal trade. India in particular, is expected to be pivotal to thermal coal trade as its power sector expands rapidly. Given the increase in population and very low per capita power consumption, big expansion plans have been laid out by private power companies. To fuel these power plants, India has been increasingly dependent on imported coal. In fact, by the end of this decade, India's thermal coal imports are projected to surpass those of China.

Source: Drewry's

RELATED CONTENT

RELATED VIDEOS

Logistics Global Logistics Logistics Outsourcing Ocean Transportation Transportation & Distribution Global Supply Chain Management Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility Chemicals & Energy
KEYWORDS Chemicals & Energy coal & dry bulk shipping coal & energy production coal & ocean transportation Drewry's global coal trade Global Logistics Global Supply Chain Management international trade Logistics Logistics Management: Ocean Transportation Logistics Outsourcing management Ocean Transportation Supply Chain Analysis & Consulting sustainability Transportation & Distribution
  • Related Articles

    Recovery in Dry Bulk Shipping Market Thought to Be Unlikely Before 2017

    Forecast Bleak for Return to Profitability in Dry Bulk Shipping Sector

    Gains Seen in Dry Bulk Shipping May Fade in Second Half of 2016

Drewry's

Growth in Coal Market Has Been Boon to Dry Bulk Shipping Industry

More from this author

Wake up to Coronavirus Updates and the latest Supply Chain News!

Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter

Timely, incisive articles delivered directly to your inbox.

Popular Stories

  • Coronavirus-watch-Armada

    Virus Update: Biden Unveils National Strategy; Pfizer Says It’s Willing to Sell Vaccine to States

    Coronavirus
  • Car Industry

    A Year of Poor Planning Led to Carmakers’ Massive Chip Shortage

    Technology
  • Can Employers Require Employees to Get the COVID-19 Vaccine? Part 1

    Watch: Can Employers Require Employees to Get the COVID-19 Vaccine? Part 1

    Coronavirus
  • U.S. Vaccine Rollout Hindered by Faulty Coordination, Messaging

    WHO Fumes at Western Drugmakers As China Fills Vaccine Void

    Coronavirus
  • COVID-19 Vaccine

    Vaccine Disparities Raise Alarm as COVID-19 Variants Multiply

    Coronavirus

Digital Edition

Scb home issue 27

2020 Supply Chain Innovator of the Year

VIEW THE LATEST ISSUE

Case Studies

  • LSP Saves Customer $1.5 Million a Year With MPO Global Inbound Management

  • Auto Supplier Wows Key Client Using riskmethods Supply Chain Savvy

  • Integrating Shipping and Compliance Saves Conglomerate Millions

  • How a Consumer Goods Giant Upped Its On-Time Delivery Performance

  • LSP Wows Global Client, Quickly Advances to Become End-to-End Provider

Visit Our Sponsors

6 River Systems ArcBest Armada
aThingz BluJay Burris Logistics
DSC Logistics DCSA (Digital Container Shipping Association) DHL Resilience360
Genpact GEP Honeywell Intelligrated
Infor Logility Magnitude Software
MPO Old Dominion Oliver Wight
OpenSky Ports America Purolator
QAD Precision Red Classic Riskmethods
TGW Systems Transportation Insights Watson Land Company
Westfalia Technologies Workjam Yang Ming
  • More From SCB
    • Featured Content
    • Video Library
    • Think Tank Blog
    • SupplyChainBrain Podcast
    • Whitepapers
    • Webinars
  • Digital Offerings
    • Digital Issue
    • Subscribe
    • Manage Your Subscription
    • Newsletters
  • Resources
    • Events Calendar
    • SCB's Great Supply Chain Partners
    • Supplier Directory
    • Case Study Showcase
    • Supply Chain Innovation Awards
    • 100 Great Partners Form
  • SCB Corporate
    • Advertise on SCB.COM
    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us
    • Data Sharing Opt-Out

All content copyright © 2016 - 2018 Keller International Publishing Corp All rights reserved. No reproduction, transmission or display is permitted without the written permissions of Keller International Publishing Corp

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing