1.   MITI disciplined it by limiting its allocation of imported coking coal.

2.   BHP said prices for weak coking coals will be negotiated on an individual mill basis over the next few weeks.

3.   All these mines are in Queensland state, which produces most of the hard coking coal.

4.   Coking coal is used to make steel.

5.   Coking coal producers this year are again facing an uphill battle on prices as economies across Southeast Asia slow, crimping demand for steel.

6.   Fueling the drop was a decline in steel shares, amid concern rising iron ore and coking coal prices will cut into earnings.

7.   Hard coking coal is used to make lump coke which, along with iron ore, is fed into blast furnaces to produce pig iron.

8.   Hard coking coal prices rose marginally.

9.   He said coking coal demand from Indian steel makers had previously been strong.

10.   Lill said the reduced contract volume reflected the lower ration of hard coking coals being used by the Japanese steel mills in blast furnaces.