Russia records sharp decline in January coal output

Russia's coal production for all uses saw a sharp decline in January, down 12.4% on month and 8.9% on year to 34.2 million tonnes, according to the latest data from the Russian Federal Statistics Service (Rosstat).

By coal type, only coking coal output increased, rising 1.1% on month and 3.4% on year to 9.1 million tonnes. Among other hard coal types, anthracite production fell 6.2% on month and 25.3% on year to 1.5 million tonnes, while other hard coal -- mainly thermal coal used for power