Chinese coking coal futures extended gains to a fourth session on Monday, surging more than 4%, as supply remained relatively low and demand was expected to recover further following the Lunar New Year holidays and the Winter Olympics.
Inventories of the metallurgical coal at 247 steel mills and 230 coking plants covered by Mysteel consultancy stood at 21 million tonnes last week, down 4% from a week earlier.
"With demand at downstream users recovering, coking plants are more willing to buy products," analysts with GF Futures wrote in a note.
Resumption of production at blast furnaces and the use-up of Australian coal could keep supply tight in China, they said.