Lower Consumption, Slower Imports Show China Approaching Peak Coal

Chinese coal imports are down 5.3% in the first eight months of 2014, and total consumption fell in the first half of the year for the first time in a century, according to a study by Greenpeace International. “China’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth and coal consumption have decoupled, suggesting a structural shift in the Chinese economy,” Guay reports. “Taken in sum, with potential policy shifts associated with the upcoming five-year plan and China’s war on coal, these look like the first indications of an approaching peak in coal consumption.”