China To Coal Miners: Raise Production Now

Chinese authorities have ordered 72 coal mines in Inner Mongolia to boost production by almost 100 million tons amid an energy crunch that has seen factories shut down and prompted fears of a disruption to the global economy. "This demonstrates the government is serious about raising local coal production to ease the shortage," one trader told Reuters. The energy crunch that started in Europe and quickly spread to Asia has hit China—as well as India—particularly hard because of their energy consumption rates and the high dependence…