China's coking coal market remained range-bound in main production areas amid insufficient demand and limited confidence, with some miners seeing their inventories accumulate and lowering prices to attract buyers.

Meanwhile, the slow recovery of coal supply did not bring substantial support to the market. Several mines still struggled to resume normal output following disruptions caused by underground longwall changes. Some others scaled down production after meeting their monthly targets.

Raw coking coal output from 363 mines under 138 enterprises contacted by Sxcoal stood at 12.56 million tonnes during the week ending April 23, a 0.05% dip week on week, Sxcoal's weekly survey data showed. The average capacity utilization of these mines inched down by 0.04 percentage point to 87.38% over the week, indicating plentiful coking coal supply as a whole.

Despite a recent rebound in spot steel prices following rising futures prices mid-week, spurred partly by a softening stance in U.S.-China trade tensions, the impact on physical coal demand was still limited. Many coke and steel makers continued to operate cautiously, drawing down existing inventories rather than rushing to replenish stockpiles.

Several buyer sources reported that while their coke production remained stable, thin profit margins capped their enthusiasm to further boost production, curbing their raw material demand.

"Coking plants' operating rates hover around 65% in the region, with most of them running at a loss," said a steelmaker source based in Yunnan. "They can't afford to ramp up production. If they do, inventories will pile up.

Another coke producer source from Shanxi echoed the sentiment, stating that coke prices have been under pressure. "If we push through a second round of price hikes, we will encounter strong resistance from steelmakers due to low market confidence."

While downstream molten iron production remained relatively robust, coking plants were hesitant to restock aggressively, even just one week before the May Day holiday. As a result, a growing number of coal miners confirmed stock buildups amid a cautious buying stance, with coking plants showing reluctance to fresh purchases, especially for pricy coal grades.

In the coal-rich provinces of Shanxi and Shaanxi, coking coal prices began to edge downward to attract consumers. One large coal mine in Zichang, Yan'an of Shaanxi cut the offer price of washed gas coal (S 0.5%, GRI 85) by 30 yuan/t to 840 yuan/t, effective April 24.

Some offers for low-sulfur primary coking coal (S 0.5%, GRI 80-85) in Anze, Linfen of Shanxi slid 30 yuan/t to 1,300 yuan/t on April 23, ex-washplant with VAT and in cash.

Over the week ending April 23, Sxcoal's latest weekly survey showed that 32 or 23% of the 138 coal enterprises cut prices by an average of 35 yuan/t, up from 17 companies lowering prices by 44 yuan/t a week ago. Meanwhile, four companies, or 0.3%, raised prices by 20 yuan/t on average, compared to 38 yuan/t a week earlier. The remaining 102 firms kept their offers unchanged.

The CCI index for Shanxi low-sulfur primary coking coal fell 18 yuan/t day on day to 1,277 yuan/t on April 24, ex-washplant with VAT, while that for mid- and high-sulfur primary coking coal stood at 1,145 yuan/t and 1,123 yuan/t, respectively, both unchanged.

In terms of the import market, environmental inspections tightened regulations at China's Ganqimaodu border crossing, forbidding open-air unloading and storage of Mongolian coal. Therefore, there were only 677 coal trucks cleared customs per day on average at the port from April 22 to 23, slumping 34.6% from April 14-19.

Portside inquiries for Mongolian coking coal languished among bearish traders and prudent Chinese buyers. "Participants are cautious, and import market sentiment stays weak," said one trader source.

At northern China ports, a deal for some 21,000 tonnes of Russian K10 coking coal was heard traded at $107/t CFR, loading in May.

In addition, prices for seaborne Australian coking coal strengthened following a higher-price trade of Goonyella premium mid-vol hard coking coal at $192.2/t FOB for 75,000 tonnes, with early June delivery.

The expanded price spread between Australian premium HCC and Chinese domestic equivalents made imported Australian cargoes less cost-effective, leading to a standoff in the import market.

The Appin West coal mine in Australia, primarily mining premium HCC, has resumed production with a capacity of around 3 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa), after an 18-day halt due to accidents. Another suspended 2.95-Mtpa Moranbah North mine has not yet restarted operation.

Additionally, the Oaky Creek mine experienced a brief suspension due to underground water leakage on April 24, with a minimal impact on supply.