POWERMAG - China continues to finance new coal plants in more than two dozen countries, even as the country has taken the lead in global renewable energy investment, according to a report from a U.S. group of energy analysts.

PLATTS - China's annual coal production in 2018 reached 3.55 billion mt, rising 5.2% year on year as the government replaced outdated production capacity with higher-quality coal supply, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement.

PLATTS - The government-appointed coal commission is finalizing recommendations this week for the phase-out of coal-fired power stations, which provide 35% of Germany's generation mix.

PLATTS - Coal exports from Russia in 2018 came to 191 million mt, a rise of 3.4% on the year, according to the latest data from the ministry of energy, making the 2018 volume the highest since S&P Global Platts began collecting data in 2013.

PLATTS - India's 12 major government-owned ports handled around 78.24 million mt of thermal coal between April to December period, up 17% from the same period a year ago, according to latest data by the Indian Ports Association, or IPA released

IEA - While global coal demand looks set to rise for the second year in a row in 2018, it is forecast to remain stable over the next five years, as declines in Europe and North America are offset by strong growth in India and Southeast Asia,

EBRD - the Bank will no longer finance thermal coal mining or coal-fired electricity generation. The Bank will also stop funding any upstream oil exploration, and will not finance upstream oil development projects except in rare and exceptional circumstances, where such investments reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

PLATTS - Asia is a growing market for Russian energy, including LNG, and a potential source of investment for the world's largest producer of resources and minerals. The Kremlin has increasingly looked to build its presence in the Asian region following the imposition of tough sanctions by the US on Russia.

REUTERS - Global gas demand would increase by 1.6 percent a year to 2040 and would be 45 percent higher by then than today,

REUTERS - Miners churned out 306.01 million tonnes of coal last month, up 3.2 percent from 296.6 million tonnes in August and up 5.2 percent from the same time last year, according to the data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).