The globalCOAL NEWC index fell 1.87%, closing at $US76.58 per tonne for the week ending Friday.

South African spot thermal coal was up on both indexes.

Richards Bay prices were up 2.85% for the week to $62.40/t while the globalCOAL DES ARA index, considered to be South African spot thermal coal prices plus freight, was slightly higher by 0.7% to $67.70/t.

In a sign of strengthening energy markets, Asia-Pacific benchmark Singapore Tapis crude oil closed last night at $78.83 a barrel, a new record for 2009.

Macquarie noted in a commodities update that South Korean utility companies consumed 5.96 million tonnes of coal in June, an annualised rate of 72.5Mt per annum, which was 5.6% higher than the previous month and 7.6% higher year-on-year.

For the first half, Macquarie said the Korean power companies consumed 34Mt of coal, 9.7% higher year-on-year as new coal-fired power units became operational.

The research division of the investment bank also crunched the numbers on the tonnages of thermal and metallurgical coal shipments from Newcastle.

Macquarie said metallurgical coal shipments reached 1.4Mt of the 8.1Mt of coal shipped in July, which was the highest rate of metallurgical coal shipments this year.

But for the year through to July, Macquarie said thermal coal shipments were up 1.1Mt while metallurgical coal shipments were down 2Mt.