Canberra probes reports China has banned Australian coal

Canberra is investigating reports Beijing ordered its state-owned enterprises to stop buying Australian coal, stoking fears that trade tensions between the countries were rising.

But analysts cautioned that the unconfirmed reports of a coal ban may reflect efforts by China to prop up its own domestic coal industry rather than a deepening political dispute with Australia.   

Beijing has reportedly issued a verbal communication to state-owned energy companies and steel mills to immediately stop importing Australian coal — a potentially crushing blow to the country’s A$55bn ($39bn) a year coal export industry.