China’s top economic planner said on Tuesday it was studying a mechanism to stabilise coal prices over the long run, in its latest move to cool the red-hot market. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said it was looking into the costs and profitability of the coal sector in an effort to work out a mechanism to guide prices to move within a reasonable range. The NDRC was also considering including coal in a “prohibiting exorbitant profits” category. The new mechanism would be based on a benchmark price plus a floating range, after taking into account costs, reasonable margins and market changes, it said. “The mechanism shall be linked to the marketisation of the thermal power sector … and those who do not strictly follow the mechanism will be severely punished,” the commission said. While China’s thermal coal futures have come off record […]