Economics

China Blacklist Strands More Than 50 Australia Coal Cargoes

  • The 5.7 million tons of coal is worth more than $500 million
  • An estimated 1,000 seafarers are manning the bulk carriers
An Australian bulk carrier.

Photographer: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images

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More than $500 million worth of Australian coal is on ships anchored off Chinese ports, as a diplomatic spat between the two countries cuts into trade, idles a portion of the world’s dry bulk carriers and threatens to spiral into a humanitarian crisis.