EIA - Brent crude oil spot prices averaged $79 per barrel (b) in September, up $6/b from August. EIA expects Brent spot prices will average $74/b in 2018 and $75/b in 2019. EIA expects West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices will average about $6/b lower than Brent prices in 2018 and in 2019.

PLATTS - China imported 146 million mt of coal and lignite in the first half of 2018, up 9.9% from the previous year and a three-year high, according to preliminary data released Friday by the General Administration of Customs. In June China imported 25.5 million mt of coal, up 17.9% on the year and 14% on the month from 22.3 million mt in May, the data showed.

PLATTS - Russian miner SUEK (Siberian Coal Energy Company) produced 55.6 million mt of coal in the first six months of 2018, which was an increase of 4% on the year, according to a statement from the company late Thursday.

BLOOMBERG - Gross domestic product advanced 1 percent from the prior quarter, with overseas shipments accounting for half the expansion, the Australian Bureau of Statistics said in Sydney Wednesday. Economists had forecast a 0.9 percent gain. The economy expanded at an annual pace of 3.1 percent, also beating estimates for a 2.8 percent increase.

API - A diverse group of energy industry associations including energy efficiency and storage, natural gas, oil, solar and wind issued the following statement condemning the Administration’s draft plan to bail out coal and nuclear plants across the country.

EIA - The United States exported 97.0 million short tons (MMst) of coal in 2017, a 61% (36.7 MMst) increase from the 2016 level. Exports to Asia more than doubled from 15.7 MMst in 2016 to 32.8 MMst in 2017, although Europe continues to be the largest recipient of U.S. coal exports.

EIA - EIA forecasts that total fossil fuels production in the United States will average almost 73 quadrillion British thermal units (Btu) in 2018, the highest level of production on record. EIA expects total fossil fuel production to then set another record in 2019, with production forecast to rise to 75 quadrillion Btu.

IEA - Coal’s share in the global energy mix is forecast to decline from 27% in 2016 to 26% in 2022 on sluggish demand growth relative to other fuels. Growth through 2022 is concentrated in India, Southeast Asia and a few other countries in Asia. Coal demand declines in Europe, Canada, the United States and China, the largest coal consumer by far, and where we forecast a structural but slow decline with some fluctuations linked to short-term market requirements.

PLATTS - National Australia Bank announced Thursday it will no longer provide financing for new thermal coal projects.

China's energy targets for 2020, if assumed to be credible and achievable, give a clear indication of likely winners and losers.