The Shanxi Coking Industry Association has announced that total shipments of coke in the Chinese province of Shanxi in 2009 reached 54.13 million mt, including 29.07 million mt by railway and 25.06 million mt by highways and roads. The province's overall coke shipment volume in 2009 represents a decline of 15.7 percent or 10.0919 million mt compared with the volume of 64.2219 million mt in 2008.
Coke exports almost came to a standstill in 2009 due to the global financial crisis, while domestic demand for coke fell significantly. Meanwhile, the price of coke in Shanxi Province fluctuated upwards from the third quarter of 2009, with coking enterprises able to achieve a low profit margin.