Oz suppliers improve Indian/Brazilian shipping terms

摘要

Further demonstrating an unprecedentedly-strong sellers' market, Australian met coal suppliers have significantly improved their shipping terms in 2008-9 supply deals with Indian and Brazilian steel makers, according to sources. They indicate that suppliers, including BHP Billiton, Anglo and Peabody have won concessions effectively worth 5 dollars-15 dollars/t, mostly by effectively having the buyet pay a share of demurrage costs at congested Australian ports. From the sellers' side, the concessions have been styled as a trade off for 'secondary markets' like India and Brazil being awarded a relatively straight-forward flow through of prices agreed with larger Japanese customers. In the Indian context, they also operate as a form of compensation for recent deals by SAIL and Vizag agreeing to pay their US suppliers - Massey, Logan & Kanawha and Alpha - the 'Japanese benchmark' of around 300 dollars/t FOB, despite a 30 dollars-40 dollars/t freight disadvantage against Australian tonnage.