BEIJING (Reuters) - China's imports of Australian coking coal, a key raw material for steel-making, doubled in June from a month earlier despite persistent restrictions at Chinese ports, official data showed.
Arrivals of Australian coking coal were at 2.82 million tonnes last month, more than double the 1.38 million tonnes in May, according to data released by the General Administration of Customs late Saturday.
However, that remains well below the 3.16 million tonnes reported in June 2018, mostly due to extended delays at Chinese customs caused by inspections.
For the first half of this year, China imported 14.53 million tonnes of coking coal from Australia, up 16.4% from same period last year, customs data showed.
Meanwhile, Chinese customs since mid-July has halted declaration clearance at coal imports at some ports, including Caofeidian port and Jingtang port in northern China, one of the country's biggest coking coal import points.
End-users such as coke plants and steel mills in those regions reported they are still allowed to bring in some imported coking coal only after receiving local customs' approvals for each cargo entering the country, which has added to clearance times.
Dalian coking coal futures <DJMcv1> have risen 12% since the beginning of this year, hitting a peak of 1,438.5 yuan ($209.13) per tonne in mid-June.
(Reporting by Muyu Xu and Cate Cadell; Editing by Sam Holmes)
