China imported 9.07 million mt of coking coal in August this year, up 17.0 percent compared to the volume in July and up 29.6 percent year on year, according to the monthly statistics issued by Chinese customs.
In particular, the imports of coking coal from Australia amounted to 4.49 million mt in August, up 13.6 percent compared to 3.96 million mt recorded in July as Chinese steel and coke producers were still seeking to purchase coking coal from Australia at lower prices amid oversupply in the import market.
In the January-August period of this year, China imported 52.99 million mt of coking coal, up 19.8 percent year on year, 1.8 percentage points higher than the growth rate recorded in the January-July period. Though the Chinese authorities are aiming to keep import volumes of coal at the same level as in 2018, the more competitive prices of imported coking coal resulted in the rises in coking coal import volumes in the January-August period, while it is anticipated that China will take measures to control the import volume of coking coal during the remainder of the year.