HK Stock Market Move | Coal stocks mostly fell, MONGOLIA ENERGY (00276) dropped by over 3%. Weak demand and high inventories are pressing down coal prices.

Most coal stocks are on a downward trend, as of the time of writing, MONGOLIA ENERGY (00276) fell by 3.39% to HK$0.57; China Coal Energy (01898) fell by 2.88% to HK$8.77; China Shenhua Energy (01088) fell by 1.93% to HK$30.55; and Yankuang Energy Group (01171) fell by 1.25% to HK$7.91. Soochow pointed out that the average daily coal shipment from ports last week (January 10 to January 17) slightly decreased compared to the previous week, still indicating a lack of demand momentum. This is mainly due to the above-average temperatures this year, resulting in high inventories and exerting certain pressure on coal prices. The bank believes that coal prices did not see a significant drop in the off-season of September to October 2024, and as the traditional peak season started in late October, the warm winter weather in 2024 led to weaker downstream inventory depletion. However, with the tightening of supply and robust demand by the end of December, coal prices have seen some recovery. It is expected that with the approaching Chinese New Year, the logic of coal supply shortage will strengthen, leading to a stable and rising trend in coal prices. Open source securities stated that on January 20 (local time), Trump will be inaugurated, and the policies he has claimed to implement upon taking office may have a certain impact on the future coal sector. From an energy perspective, his efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict may benefit international energy prices returning to reasonable levels, despite the short-term geopolitical game; secondly, Trump's broader tariffs on China and other countries may impose greater pressure on export chains, affecting the global economy, capital markets, and subsequently impacting the coal sector, causing significant fluctuations in the short term.