Coal futures were trading below $85 per tonne on Friday, after touching $90, the highest level since May 2019 earlier in a week, as rising temperatures across China slowed down a bit the demand. Prices have been recently supported by colder than usual temperatures in many parts of the northern hemisphere, as well as post-Covid industrial demand from China. At the same time, environmental concerns and bans on imports meant that many coal mines were not operating, leading to supply restrictions and production cuts. China' s embargo on Australian coal imports has lingered on for months, as the world' s second-largest economy has been replacing those imports with purchases from other countries such as South Africa and Russia where coal prices have risen.