China's coal imports, including lignite, thermal and metallurgical coal, totaled 15.23 million mt in January, down 9.2% year on year and 13.7% on the month, according to preliminary data released Monday by the General Administration of Customs.
"We suspect the weakness could be attributed to thermal coal, where a pick-up in domestic output may have weakened demand for imported coal," ANZ analysts said in a note.
In December, China imported about 17.6 million mt of coal.
In January, China exported 606,000 mt of coal, jumping nearly 162% year on year and up 38% on the month, the data showed.