This week, the coke market in China showed a narrow and weak trend (10.17-10.24)

October 24th, news

I. Price Trends

According to the commodity market analysis system: On October 24, 2025, the average price was 1,413 CNY per ton. The coke market maintained stable operation. Major steel mills in Tangshan plan to increase the price of wet quenched coke by 50 CNY/ton and dry quenched coke by 55 CNY/ton, effective at midnight on October 27, 2025.

2. Market Analysis

On the market front, on October 24, prices for Lanthan carbon in Shenmu remained firm, with medium-grade materials trading at 790–860 CNY/ton and small-grade materials at 740–800 CNY/ton. Meanwhile, the mainstream price for metallurgical coke was 550–585 CNY/ton, all quoted ex-factory on a cash-inclusive, tax-inclusive basis. In the Tangshan market, metallurgical coke prices stayed stable for now, with current mainstream transaction prices standing at 1,735 CNY/ton for fixed-bed coking coal of Grade 1 (dry quenched) and 1,805 CNY/ton for top-charging coking coal of Grade 1 (dry quenched), both also quoted ex-factory on a cash-inclusive, tax-inclusive basis.

Cost pressures persist: Coking coal prices continued to trend steadily but slightly higher—specifically, Shanxi lean coking coal was priced at 1,250 CNY/ton, while Mongolian raw coal grade 5# reached 1,127 CNY/ton—providing solid support for coke prices.

On the supply and demand front: Environmental production restrictions in North China have tightened supply, but sluggish steel mill profits—Tangshan billet margins are currently at -61 CNY/ton—are curbing demand. As a result, the pig iron market has shown mixed performance this week, with transaction activity remaining subdued. Pig iron producers continued normal operations throughout the week, primarily focusing on fulfilling earlier orders, which led to a decline in factory inventories. Meanwhile, downstream buyers maintained their typically rigid procurement strategies. Overall, the market remains tepid, though at week’s end, the second round of coke price hikes began to take effect, keeping raw material costs persistently high.

III. Market Forecast

Cyclohexane analysts believe that the successive implementation of price hikes by coking companies is expected to keep the coke market stable yet slightly bullish in the short term, with prices trending upward on a modest scale.