Coal decline causes fall in Mongolian exports

Mongolia’s export trade fell 2.6% in 2013 compared to 2012. The fall was largely due to a decrease in coal shipments to China, according to the country’s central bank.

The total value of Mongolian exports reaches US$ 4.27 billion – down from US$ 4.38 billion in 2012, the bank said in its foreign trade review for December.

Disputes over prices led to deliveries of coal to China falling. The decline was exacerbated by falling demand over the course of the year. Coal imports from Mongolia to China fell 20% over 2013 to 17.3 million t, according to official Chinese data.

Increases in some Mongolian exports, such as copper, were offset by a 11.5% drop in coal shipments.

The Mongolian export industry remains heavily dependent on mineral and mining resources. According to the central bank, 88% of the country’s total export trade consisted of minerals in 2013.

China accounts for more than 90% of Mongolian exports. However, some coal mining companies operating in the landlocked country have begun to look at expanding its export horizons and diversifying distribution to other reaches of the world – primarily Russia and eastern Europe. In December, Aspire Mining announced that it viewed Russia as “a key market” for coal mined from its Ovoot metallurgical coal project. 

Edited from various sources by Sam Dodson

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcoal.com/handling/22012014/mongolian_exports_fall_in_2013_433/