*Newcastle Coal Price Reaches Record for Fourth Week (Update1) * By Angela Macdonald-Smith and Michele Batchelor
Nov. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Coal prices at Australia's Newcastle port, a benchmark for supplies in Asia, rose to a record for a fourth consecutive week on concerns that supply will be constrained by port congestion as Asian demand gains. Power station coal for delivery within the next three months gained 97 cents, or 1.2 percent, to $84.48 a metric ton in the week ended Nov. 16, according to the globalCOAL NEWC Index, an Asian benchmark calculated each Friday. China, the fastest-growing major economy, become a net importer of coal for the first time this year, while a prolonged wet season in Indonesia and bottlenecks at Australian ports are worsening a shortage of the fuel in Asia. Consumption, spurred by global economic growth, has outpaced exports from Australia, Indonesia and South Africa. ``Spot thermal prices have a lot of momentum at the moment and can go higher,'' said Sydney-based Gavin Wendt, a senior resources analyst at Fat Prophets Funds Management. ``Given the high price of crude oil, coal still looks cheap.'' Crude oil for December delivery reached a record $98.62 a barrel Nov. 7 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Crude has gained 56 percent this year and climbed more than fivefold in six years. Coal mining companies in Australia's Hunter Valley shipped 7.4 million tons of coal through Newcastle in October, less than the targeted 7.9 million tons, because of maintenance work and cargo-loading constraints, the Hunter Valley Coal Chain Logistics Team said on its Web site. Xstrata Plc, Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd. are among producers that export through Newcastle. Shipping Target The logistics team, coordinator of coal transportation through the rail and port network at Newcastle, is targeting November throughput of 7.3 million tons. The line of ships waiting outside Newcastle port to load coal reached a record 79 in June after storms disrupted operations and hasn't been less than 37 this year. The number of ships in the queue is expected to remain at about 40 through December, the logistics team said last week. Forty-two vessels were queuing off the port as of this morning, the same as last week, according to the Hunter Valley Logistics team. Eighteen ships with coal left the port in the week ended Nov. 17, one less than a week ago, Newcastle Port said in an e-mail statement. Thirteen headed to Japan, three to Korea and one each to Taiwan and the Netherlands, the statement said. The globalCOAL Newcastle monthly index reached its highest of $75.19 a ton in October. China imported 44 percent more coal to 42.34 million tons of coal in the first 10 months of this year, the nation's customs said Nov. 15. Exports dropped 17.6 percent to 43.26 million tons in the same period. To contact the reporters on this story: Angela Macdonald-Smith in Sydney at [EMAIL PROTECTED] ; Michele Batchelor in Singapore at [EMAIL PROTECTED] *Last Updated: November 19, 2007 01:11 EST*
