China's raw coal output remains stable in November

BEIJING - China's output of raw coal showed stable growth in November, up 4.5 percent year-on-year to 320 million tons, official data showed.

The growth narrowed from the 8 percent gain year-on-year in October, while the daily average output reached 10.51 million tons, the highest level since December 2015, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In the first 11 months, China's coal output climbed 5.4 percent year-on-year to 3.21 billion tons.

China saw a 13.1 percent decrease in coal imports year-on-year last month, compared with an 8.5 percent growth in October.

The coal data was released with other energy indicators. China's crude oil imports saw a sharp increase in November compared with a month earlier, rising by 3.99 million tons.

Crude oil output dipped 1.3 percent year-on-year to 15.53 million tons in November.

China accelerated the production of natural gas in a bid to ensure the natural gas supply for heating in winter.

Natural gas output jumped 10.1 percent year-on-year to 14.3 billion cubic meters in November, accelerating from the 7.5 percent gain registered in October.

On a monthly basis, the daily average output of natural gas rose by 0.5 cubic meters to hit a record high of 480 million cubic meters.

China's natural gas imports stood at 9.15 million tons last month, the highest level since November 2017, with an increase of 39.8 percent year-on-year.