The Whitehaven Coal Ltd (ASX: WHC) share price is down 5.1% at the time of writing, having earlier posted losses of more than 5.5%.
The S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) coal stock closed yesterday trading for $6.05. Shares are currently swapping hands for $5.74 apiece.
It's not just the Whitehaven stock that's taking a beating today, though.
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ASX 200 coal shares under fire today
The ASX 200 is down 0.7% as I pen this.
But the other big coal stocks are joining the Whitehaven share price in underperforming today.
The New Hope Corp Ltd (ASX: NHC) share price, for example, is down 3.3%. And rival ASX coal stock Yancoal Australia Ltd (ASX: YAL) is down 2.5%.
The coal miners have been under pressure in 2023 as coal prices have come off the all-time highs posted last year.
And last night saw an outsized drop in coal prices, with Newcastle coal futures tumbling 12% to just under US$141 per tonne. That's down some 65% from the US$400 that same tonne of coal was trading for back in December.
While there's no clear reason for the dramatic overnight fall that's pressuring the Whitehaven share price today, The Australian Financial Review cited analysts who pointed to shifting demand patterns in coal-hungry China, India and other nations across North Asia.
Whitehaven share price snapshot
Despite sliding a precipitous 35% in 2023, the Whitehaven share price remains up 9% over the past 12 months.
Savvy investors who picked up the ASX 200 coal stock two years ago will still be sitting on gains of 261%.
