China Increases Coal ExportChina exported 15.99 million tons of coal in the first four months this year, representing an increase of 4.9 million tons over the same period last year.Zhang Baoming, director of the State Administration of Coal Industry, said the coal sector is exhibiting a favorable growth trend and the excess supply of coal in some parts of the country has been diminished. Moreover, coal prices rose moderately, he said. Zhang expects the country's coal export to top 38 million tons by the end of this year. China is the world's largest coal producer, turning out 1.2 billion tons annually, or one third of the world's total. However, China exports only 30 million tons of coal annually, accounting for merely six percent of the world's total coal trade. To expand coal export is of great significance for the sustainable development of the country's coal industry, as it can effectively reduce the coal stockpile and create a balance between coal supply and demand. The official noted that the increase of coal exports will open the country's coal sector wider to the rest of the world. |
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