Oct 22 (Reuters) - China's coal market will remain amply supplied into the fourth quarter despite peak winter consumption and the fundamentals are expected to remain much the same in 2014, local media reported on Tuesday, citing the China Coal Transportation Association.
China is the world's top coal producer and consumer. Abundant domestic supplies has kept prices depressed, dampening its appetite for imports.
Should China's economy grow at a weaker-than-expected pace in 2014, the domestic coal market would easily tip into a state of oversupply, the China Securities Journal quoted Bin Haoxiang, director of the association, as saying at an industry conference.
The association also said that China's coal consumption is expected to grow by about 3 percent per annum and reach 4.8 billion tonnes by 2020, the Securities Times reported.
Coal arrivals into China in September slipped 0.9 percent from August to 25.7 million tonnes, as a narrowing price arbitrage has made overseas supplies less attractive. Imports in the first nine months of 2013 rose 18.5 percent, down from 34 percent the same period last year.
China's steam coal prices edged higher last week, posting their first weekly gain in 11 months as winter restocking by utilities coincided with a two-week planned maintenance of the main coal railway, and a pick up in the economy could be buffering demand, traders said
Chinese domestic coal prices rose 1 yuan from a week ago to 531 yuan ($87.06) per tonne on Oct. 16, the first weekly gain since November 7, 2012, according to the Bohai-Bay Rim Steam Coal index.
Although that has sparked hopes of a short-term price recovery, trade sources said gains would be capped by plentiful supplies, while a resumption of railway operations toward the end of the month could again start to pressure prices.
"Major power plants are comfortably stocked and are unlikely to increase their bids in the coming weeks given the annual contract negotiations will be starting in early December," said a Shanghai-based trader. (Reporting by Fayen Wong; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)
