Efforts by China to control air pollution by reining in industrial output could help ease an energy crunch and tame a bull run in thermal coal, according to the China Coal Transport and Distribution Association. Thermal coal has rallied as Covid-19 lockdowns have disrupted the transportation of supplies. But the runup may lose steam as more industries start rationing output next month under Beijing’s “blue sky” campaigns, said Han Lei, a CCTD coal analyst on a Wednesday webcast. “We may see thermal prices reach a turning point in December,” said Han, as curtailed industrial output lowers demand for the fuel. President Xi Jinping has made cleaning up the environment a priority since he came to power in 2013. That’s included advancing Beijing’s Blue Sky effort, which implements measures to cut pollution, including curbing industrial production, in the most hazy days of winter. Cement factories in the northern industrial hub […]