Commodities
China Likely to Ditch Low-Grade Coal From Indonesia Due to Glut
Domestic production, which topped 4.7 billion tons last year, is China’s main source of supply.
Photographer: Chu Baorui/Feature China/Future Publishing/Getty Images
China is likely to cut imports of the lowest grades of coal as a glut of the fuel makes the trade uneconomic and the government tightens up on carbon emissions.
It’s a move that would weigh most heavily on suppliers in Indonesia. China’s benchmark price of thermal coal has slumped to a four-year low, a product of record domestic production and a binge on imports in recent years. Power demand hasn’t kept up as the economy has slowed, while renewables are shouldering more of the burden of electricity generation.