Taiwan April coal imports hit record low
Monday, May 11 2026 - 07:57 AM WIB
Taiwan’s coal imports fell further in April 2026, declining more than 10% from the previous month and slipping below the year-earlier level to mark the lowest April volume since at least 2003, according to preliminary customs data cited by SX Coal.
Coal imports totaled 4.46 million tonnes in April, down 4.95% from 4.70 million tonnes a year earlier and 11.13% lower than March’s 5.02 million tonnes.
The import value stood at $594 million, up 7.54% year-on-year but down 10.31% month-on-month. The average import price was calculated at $133.04/t, representing a 13.14% increase from April 2025 and a slight 0.92% rise from March 2026.
Australia remained the largest supplier, shipping 2.45 million tonnes of coal to Taiwan in April, up 18.96% from a year ago but down 12.08% from the prior month. This accounted for 55% of total imports, slightly lower than March's 55.5%.
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Indonesia followed with 1.20 million tonnes, down 14.45% year-on-year but up 45.63% month-on-month. Colombia supplied 0.26 million tonnes, a sharp decline of 47.89% from April 2025 but a 59.07% increase from March 2026.
By coal type, bituminous coal imports totaled 3.62 million tonnes in April, down 4.06% year-on-year and 19% month-on-month. Other coal imports stood at 0.84 million tonnes, decreasing 8.17% from a year earlier but rising 52.98% from March.
Over the first four months of 2026, Taiwan imported 15.60 million tonnes of coal, down 0.25% from the same period last year. The cumulative import value was $1.98 billion, a 1.2% year-on-year drop.
Metallurgical coke imports reached 21,200 tonnes in April, surging four times from a year earlier and far exceeding March's 1,800 tonnes. Between January and April, coke imports totaled 40,600 tonnes, down 10.57% from a year ago.
Separately, liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in April were 2.07 million tonnes, up 4.34% year-on-year but down 1.65% month-on-month. In the first four months of 2026, Taiwan's LNG imports totaled 7.44 million tonnes, up 1.09% from the same period in 2025.
Editing by Reiner Simanjuntak