Yanzhou Coal Mining, the listed unit of the nation's fourth-largest coal producer, yesterday forecast a more than 190 per cent jump in net profit for the full year after posting a four-fold increase in earnings for the third quarter. The company attributed the spectacular jump in quarterly profit to an 83.4 per cent rise in the average selling price of coal, which reached 795 yuan (HK$900) per tonne, as well as a 2.36 per cent increase in sales volume to 8.66 million tonnes. Analysts say Yanzhou is the biggest beneficiary of the rise in spot coal prices among the three largest state-backed listed coal companies because it has the highest proportion of sales in that market. Sales through long-term contracts commanded much lower prices for all producers. Yanzhou also benefited because a high proportion of its sales comes from coking coal used in steel smelting plants. These prices have risen more than power-station coal. 'Due to the increase in domestic and international prices of coal, it is estimated that net profit attributable to shareholders will increase more than 190 per cent, compared with the same period last year,' Yanzhou Coal said last night. Separately, Yanzhou said its board had approved a proposal to acquire a 74 per cent stake in Shandong Hua Ju Energy from its parent Yankuang Group for 593.24 million yuan. It did not provide details. Meanwhile, China Coal Energy posted an 11.38 per cent year-on-year rise in third-quarter net profit to 2.18 billion yuan. For the first nine months of this year, net profit jumped 35.2 per cent to 5.73 billion yuan. The results were boosted by higher coal prices and sales volumes. However, the results were distorted by a 1.1 billion yuan loss in the first nine months and a 1.66 billion yuan gain in the same period last year because of a change in value of the China Cosco A shares it held. The profit increase would have been more pronounced if the share value gain and loss were excluded. A Thomson Reuters poll of 23 analysts forecast the firm would post a 9.89 billion yuan net profit for this year and 12.59 billion yuan next year. The company said third-quarter turnover rose 49.45 per cent year on year to 15.56 billion yuan.
