Chinese Coal Imports Crashed by 30% in 2015

No one likes coal anymore, not even folks from W. Virginia.

The Chinese are moving away from coal, most likely in favor of burning human skeletons instead. While 62% of energy derives from coal, that number is expected to drop mightily as the Chinese citizenry tire from wearing gas masks to the grocery store, choking on coal infused smog during their morning commute.

Overseas shipments into the world’s largest energy consumer declined about 30 percent to 204.06 million metric tons last year, the least since 2011, according to preliminary data released by the Beijing-based General Administration of Customs on Wednesday. The contraction was the largest since 2004, when Bloomberg started tracking the data. Imports in December rose a second month to 17.6 million tons.

Coal demand in China has slid as its economy slows and shifts toward consumer-led growth while the government seeks to cuts industrial overcapacity and curb pollution. The world’s biggest producer of carbon emissions is also trying to cut the use of coal as smog has blanketed cities from Shanghai to Beijing, forcing factories and schools to close and intensifying social unrest.

RIP W. Virginia.