Coal stocks have been undeservedly punished with the sell off in crude oil, natural gas and agricultural commodities. The real world shows that coal prices are holding up at historical highs going into the month of August. Numbers don't lie, but markets tend of over react and overshoot. I believe the best coal companies listed are tremendous buys at current prices.
The big picture future for coal is cleaning it up. Coal to liquids is just a very critical important new technology for the industry. It will allow coal to be converted and in the process to be cleaned so it becomes a fuel that becomes environmentally compliant. That's really the future for coal, to be a fuel that's environmentally compliant.