Coal Prices Suddenly Soar, Indonesia in Global Spotlight
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - Coal prices have suddenly caught fire.
According to Refinitiv, coal prices closed at US$132 per ton in Thursday’s trading (16/7/2026). The price jumped 1.15%.
The gain broke a negative trend that had persisted for two consecutive days.
Yesterday’s closing price was also the highest since 17 June 2026, or the past month.
Coal prices surged again, supported by rising oil prices and strong demand.
Bloomberg reported that Asian thermal coal prices jumped to a 22-month high after Indonesia’s new export rules triggered concerns over global supply.
As the world’s largest thermal coal exporter, Indonesia’s changed export mechanism is deemed to have caused delivery delays and tightened supply. This has pushed major importing countries such as China, India, Japan and South Korea to look for alternative supply sources.
The price rally was further reinforced by high electricity demand during the Asian summer, whilst supply from other countries has not yet been able to replace Indonesia’s role.
Market players expect coal prices to remain high if export disruptions from Indonesia persist, given Indonesia’s important role in the global thermal coal trade.
South Korea’s Coal Imports Surge
South Korea’s coal imports jumped in June 2026, reaching 10.13 million tonnes. This figure is the highest in five months and the highest June level in the past four years.
Data from the Korea Customs Service showed that import volume rose 31.97% compared with June last year and increased 22% from May. The surge was driven by stockpiling ahead of summer in anticipation of a spike in electricity demand.
Throughout the first half of 2026, South Korea’s coal imports reached 57.04 million tonnes, up 21.55% year on year. Coal remains the most economical energy choice after LNG prices surged due to the US-Iran conflict. In addition, limited electricity supply from nuclear power plants has also increased coal usage.
In terms of suppliers, Australia remains the largest exporter to South Korea with shipments of 4.13 million tonnes, followed by Russia at 2.21 million tonnes. Meanwhile, imports from Indonesia reached 1.72 million tonnes, down 11.36% compared with last year, although up 22.49% from May.
The value of South Korea’s coal imports in June also surged to US$1.39 billion, up 62.39% year on year. The average import price reached US$136.76 per tonne, reflecting still-high coal prices in the global market.
India’s Thermal Coal Imports Fall
Unlike Korea, India’s thermal coal imports fell 12.5% to 77.61 million tonnes in the first half of 2026.
According to BigMint data, the decline came alongside increased use of renewable energy, abundant domestic coal stocks, and high imported coal prices.
Shipments from the two main suppliers, Indonesia and South Africa, fell 17.5% and 9.4% respectively. The decline in imports deepened in May-June due to the conflict in the Middle East, which disrupted shipping routes and pushed up freight costs.
Although India’s electricity consumption rose 5.5% in the first half of 2026, growth in renewable-based power generation jumped 21.9%. This is far higher than coal-fired power generation, which grew only 4%. This situation has suppressed coal import needs.
BigMint expects India’s coal imports to continue declining until the end of 2026. Apart from strong domestic supply, high global coal prices, rising shipping costs, and an increasing share of renewable energy are expected to keep limiting import demand.
Nonetheless, coal imports from Russia could potentially increase because Russian coal is more competitively priced than coal from Indonesia, South Africa, or the United States.