DAILY: China's thermal coal rangebound, pressures looming

China's spot thermal coal market remained largely stable on April 2, with trading activity slowing down after a flurry of buying for medium- and low-calorific value cargoes. With the Qingming Festival approaching later this week (Friday-Sunday), many buyers opted to stay on the sidelines before the holiday.

At northern transfer ports, coal trading activity remained stagnant yesterday. Apart from a few traders seeking prompt cargoes to fulfill previously secured orders with utilities, overall demand remained sluggish due to wide gaps between offers and bids. Some portside sellers therefore lowered prices to stimulate sales, but this has