China's coal imports rebounded strongly in March 2026 from a weak February base impacted by the Chinese New Year, with shipments from Mongolia rising sharply by more than 4 million tonnes from the previous month.

China imported 39.06 million tonnes of coal last month, rising 0.8% year on year (YoY) and 26.2% month on month (MoM), according to the latest data released by the General Administration of Customs.

March coal imports were worth $2.94 billion, up 3.1% YoY and 30.5% MoM. This put the average import prices at $75.4/t, up $1.6/t YoY and $2.4/t MoM.

Among all sources, Indonesian remained China's largest supplier in March, but its market share narrowed by seven percentage points (pps) from February to 39% as Mongolian cargoes surged.

The shift highlighted a major structural change in China's coal trade flows. In July 2021, Indonesian coal imports were 27 times larger than Mongolian shipments. Although that gap narrowed significantly over the past two to three years, Indonesian volumes still exceeded Mongolian supply by roughly three times in recent periods.

On an annual basis, China's Indonesian coal imports were 11.9 times larger than Mongolian imports in 2021. The ratio narrowed to 5.5 times in 2022, then to 3.1 times in 2023, 2.9 times in 2024 and 2.4 times in 2025.

In the first quarter of 2026, the gap narrowed further to 1.8 times, while in March alone Indonesian imports were only 1.4 times Mongolian volumes. The trend has been driven mainly by rapid growth in Mongolian coal supply and a lack of competitiveness in Indonesian coal prices.

China's coal imports from Indonesia in 2025 were up 8% from 2021 levels at 210 million tonnes, while imports from Mongolia surged 441% to 88.96 million tonnes. Mongolian exports are expected to continue growing, potentially narrowing the trade gap.

China imported 15.41 million tonnes of Indonesian coal in March, down 14.2% from a year earlier but up 8.1% from February, with the share down from 46% in February to 39%. Import value was $880 million, with an average price of $57.4/t, up $1.9/t month on month and $1.1/t year on year.

Imports from Mongolia reached 11.13 million tonnes that month, marking the second time on record that monthly arrivals surpassed 10 million tonnes, following January this year. The figures jumped 63.5% year on year and 61.4% from February. Import value was $740 million, while the average price stood at $66.1/t, up $3.2/t month on month but down $2.3/t from a year earlier.

Mongolia accounted for 29% of China's total coal imports in March, up 7 pps from February. Russia, Australia and Canada ranked third to fifth, with market shares of 17%, 11% and 2%, respectively.

Russia ranked as China's third-largest coal supplier in March, with imports totaling 6.6 million tonnes, down 9.9% YoY but up 40.9% MoM. China also imported 4.19 million tonnes of coal from Australia. The volume was down 4.8% YoY and 3.3% MoM. Coal intakes from Canada rose 4.2% YoY and surged 223.1% MoM to 863,000 tonnes.

By coal type, thermal coal remained the dominant category, accounting for 68% of China's coal imports in March. China imported 26.64 million tonnes of thermal coal (non-coking coal), decreasing 11.6% YoY but up 16.4% MoM. Indonesia was the largest supplier, contributing 58% of the total.

Coking coal imports reached 12.42 million tonnes, the second-highest monthly level on record, rising 44.7% year on year and 54.0% from February. Coking coal accounted for 32% of total imports, up 6 pps from the previous month. Mongolia remained the largest supplier, providing 62% of China's coking coal imports.

China imported a record 120 million tonnes during the January-March period, up 1.2% from a year earlier, while total import value fell 6.6% to $8.73 billion.