Mongolian coal exports plunge to 2.5 million t in Nov

Mongolia’s exports of lignite and bituminous coal in November slumped by 38% on month or 15% on year to 2.46 million tonnes, data released by the country’s National Statistical Office on December 12 show, a decline which underscored the impact that tighter controls at China-Mongolia border checkpoints are having on Mongolian deliveries.

China buys almost all Mongolian coal for external sales and beginning in mid-November, China’s General Administration of Customs began slowing the clearance of Mongolian coal as part of a strategy launched by Beijing to ensure that China’s total coal imports for 2018 fall below last year’s level, as reported.