Metallurgicalcoal spot prices continue to rise, reaching $209 per ton on September 22, World Coal reported.

"Thefact remains that coking coal is a key raw material for nearly all new steel productionin the world," the report quoted Ben Fitzsimmons of Hume Coal as saying.

Healso noted that the price rebound damage the credibility of The AustraliaInstitute, which has persistently upheld the Green's claim that thecontroversial fossil fuel is in "terminal decline," said the report.

Theprice surge has been attributed to China's reduction in working days and its increasingdemand for coking coal, as well as to a number of which recently took place inAustralia. However, analysts consider the current price trend , which may notlast much longer than the upcoming fourth-quarter benchmark.