Asia coal prices hit record on hot global competition for fuel

A worsening global fuel shortage catapulted Asia’s coal benchmark to a record, threatening to boost power bills and add to inflation woes.

Spot physical coal at Australia’s Newcastle port jumped 3.4% to a record $402.50 a ton on Friday, according to a biweekly index compiled by IHS Markit seen by Bloomberg. That’s the first time the highly watched spot index rallied above $400.