i Develop Stocks Advisory

Coal Jumps to Record Above $100 a Ton on Output Cuts Coal prices jumped to a record above $100 a metric ton at Australia's Newcastle port, a benchmark for Asia, as snowstorms in China, power cuts in South Africa and floods in Queensland reduced output. Power-station coal prices at the New South Wales port climbed $23.09, or 25 percent, to $116.44 a ton in the week ended Feb. 1, according to the globalCOAL NEWC Index. The price gained 73 percent in 2007. It was the second straight week of record prices. European prices rose to the highest ever last week, according to ICAP Plc. China, the world's largest producer and consumer of coal, will halt exports until April after the worst snowstorms in 50 years disrupted output. Power shortages in South Africa forced Anglo American Plc to close mines last month and in Australia, the world's biggest coal exporter, BHP Billiton Mitsubishi Alliance is among four miners that said they would miss deliveries after heavier-than-usual rain flooded pits. ``It's all stemming back to China, where it looks as if they've got some real problems,'' said Graham Wailes, a coal analyst at AME Mineral Economics Pty in Sydney. ``South Africa is having its dramas; the pressure's on, it's a bit of a short-term squeeze.'' The rising prices helped drive up coal producers' shares. Centennial Coal Co., Australia's second-largest coal company by sales, added as much as 30 Australian cents, or 8.1 percent, to A$4.00 on the Australian Stock Exchange, while Sydney-based Gloucester Coal gained as much as 20 cents, or 3.3 percent, to A$6.30. Straits Asia Resources Ltd., a coal producer in Indonesia, rose as much as 16 percent in Singapore trading.