China's coal output up 1.3% in Jan-April

Output of raw coal in China rose 1.3 percent year-on-year to 1.15 billion metric tons in the first four months this year, official data showed.

The country produced 320 million tons of raw coal last month, up 6.0 percent year-on-year, narrowing 3.6 percentage points from the growth in March, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

The country imported 30.95 million tons of coal in April, up 22.3 percent year-on-year. In the first four months, coal imports rose by 26.9 percent to hit 130 million tons.

Coal prices further dipped, with the transaction price of Qinhuangdao 5,500 kcal/kg thermal coal standing at 501 yuan ($70.63) per ton on May 8, down 39 yuan from that in early April, the data showed.