Freight rates for shipping coal from northern China's Qinhuangdao port to the other Chinese ports of Zhangjiagang, Shanghai and Guangzhou continued to drop in the week to Tuesday, the fifth week in a row, Qinhuangdao Port said.

The freight rates from Qinhuangdao to Zhangjiagang for 20,000-30,000 mt capacity vessels averaged Yuan 34.90/mt ($5.76/mt) in the week ended Tuesday, down Yuan 6.80/mt week on week, the report said.

The Qinhuangdao-Shanghai route for vessels with a capacity of 40,000-50,000 mt tumbled Yuan 8.30/mt week on week to an average of Yuan 29.80/mt and the freight rate from Qinhuangdao to Guangzhou for 50,000-60,000 mt vessels fell by Yuan 5.90/mt to Yuan 42.90/mt.

Meanwhile, coal stocks at Qinhuangdao port stood at 5.63 million mt as of Wednesday, up from 5.16 million mt on January 1, and 4.69 million mt on December 25, port figures show.