(Yicai Global) July 15 -- China's coal production rose 2.6 percent annually to 1.76 billion tons in the first half, according to official data published today.

The country produced 330 million tons of coal in June alone, up 10.4 percent from the year-ago period, the National Bureau of Statistics said.

China's Administration of Customs said on July 12 that the nation also imported 154 million tons coal in the first half, 27.1 million tons of which were in June.