As the first major cold snap of the winter grips northern China this week, utilities are desperately trying to overcome a shortage of the coal they need to produce power as customers crank up heating to fight the chill. With coal inventories languishing below 20 days of use, well under the five-year average, power companies will be forced to stick with their record pace of imports for the rest of the year, stoking an unprecedented rally that has seen international prices more than double in 2016. The rush for foreign coal used to make electricity showed no sign of easing this week, with the Pacific benchmark Newcastle coal price on […]