ULAANBAATAR, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Mongolia's coal exports dropped by nearly a quarter in January from a year earlier, with deliveries disrupted by ongoing congestion at the border with key trading partner China.
The fall was part of a 6.3-percent year-on-year decline in overall mineral exports, according to data published by Mongolia's National Statistics Office on Wednesday.
The nation's January coal exports dropped 24.1 percent to 1.995 million tonnes, with their value down 18.45 percent at $138 million, the data showed.
China was the destination of 90 percent of Mongolia's total exports in January.
The office did not specify how much coal was shipped to China over the period, but deliveries have been disrupted for at least six months, with customs authorities limiting the number of trucks allowed to pass through the border amid a crackdown on the smuggling of products like meat.
In late December, Mongolia suspended coal deliveries to clear the key supply road of a dangerous queue of traffic that at times stretched 100 kilometres into the Gobi desert. road is now operational, but companies have been issued quotas to restrict the number of trucks allowed to use it. The government also plans to open a new route for coal trade to reduce congestion.
According to Chinese customs data, Mongolian coal shipments to its southern neighbour fell 18.6 percent in December, 2017 to 2.83 million tonnes, though volumes rose 27.6 percent to 33.6 million tonnes over the year as a whole. COAL/CN
The Mongolian data showed that the value of gold exports from the country climbed 49.3 percent year-on-year in January to $27.16 million.
However, copper exports continued to sag, falling 7.4 percent in value, with ore grades in decline at the open pit in the Oyu Tolgoi mine, run by Rio Tinto RIO.AX RIO.L .
Ore grades are expected to improve at Oyu Tolgoi when production from the underground mine commences in 2021.