Asia Coal Prices Hit Record on Hot Global Competition for Fuel
- From Japan to Germany, utilities are snatching up more coal
- Surging coal prices threaten higher power bills and inflation
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A worsening global fuel shortage catapulted Asia’s coal benchmark to a record, threatening to boost power bills and add to inflation woes.
Spot physical coal at Australia’s Newcastle port jumped 3.4% to a record $402.50 a ton on Friday, according to a biweekly index compiled by IHS Markit seen by Bloomberg. That’s the first time the highly watched spot index rallied above $400.