China: Thermal coal imports decline by 70%, y-o-y, in March

China’s thermal coal imports fell sharply by 70% y-o-y to 2 mnt in Mar’22, customs data shows. However, on a m-o-m basis, imports rose by 20%. The share of Russian coal imports remained largely unchanged at 820,000 t despite sanctions and Russia’s exclusion from the SWIFT banking system. Indonesian imports rose 23% to 750,000 t. Imports are expected to edge lower in the coming months on record coal output in China this year.