China recorded a drastic decline in coal export in February, largely as a result of extreme winter weather, sources with the General Administration of Customs said on Wednesday.

China sold three million tons of coal abroad last month, down 32 percent from the same month of last year.

By contrast, the country's coal exports stood at 5.75 million tons in January, up 74.8 percent on the 3.29 million-ton level a year earlier.

In the first two months of this year, China exported 8.75 million tons of coal, up 13.5 percent in the same period of last year.

In a related development, the nation exported 2.12 million tons of coke and semi coke in the January-February period, down 20.4 percent. But the export value soared 70.7 percent year-on-year to $553 million.

(Xinhua News Agency March 13, 2008)