Faced with sluggish sales, some converters are re-averaging their weekly quotations downward and offering discounts simply to keep volumes moving, a pattern that underscores how thin margins have become across the downstream chain.
Renewed US-Iran hostilities have kept traders on edge, and talks between Oman and Iran over a corridor along the Hormuz route have done little to allay concern over a potential disruption to regional flows.
Capitalising on the positive momentum and firm upstream crude benchmarks, Shenhua Baotou Coal Chemical Co. lifted baseline auction thresholds across the board to kick off September trading, though buyer participation turned increasingly selective amid expanded parcel sizes.