Chinese coal enterprises see improving profits in 2016

Miners carry parts at a colliery in Huaibei, Anhui province. Xie Zhengyi / For China Daily

BEIJING - Chinese coal enterprises saw falling sales but improving profits in 2016, industrial data showed Monday.

Raw coal output reached about 2.3 billion tons in 2016, down 11.2 percent year on year, with sales dropping 9.29 percent compared with 2015, according to data released by China National Coal Association.

However, profits from subsidized coal enterprises surged by nearly 400 percent to reach over 32 billion yuan ($4.65 billion) last year, compared with losses exceeding 4.2 billion yuan in 2015.

Analysts believed rising coal prices to be a key factor in the coal sector's financial performance as the overcapacity reduction drive shrank coal supply.

The world's largest coal producer and consumer is slashing coal capacity as excessive supply weighs on its economy and smog pollutes big cities.

China plans to shut down at least 500 outdated coal mines in 2017, cutting capacity of 50 million tons, according to the National Energy Administration.