Coal and power trade between China and Russia has also been on the rise.

The proportion of coal in China's total energy consumption dropped from 72.4 percent in 2005 to 56.8 percent in 2020.

The volume of coal transported by trains and ships in China saw a surge in October and November amid the country's solid efforts to ensure stability in coal supply during this winter, official data showed.

The volume of coal transported by trains and ships in China saw a surge in October and November amid the country's solid efforts to ensure stability in coal supply during this winter, official data showed.

Refined nickel production in January-September totalled 2.043mn t, while apparent demand was 2.151mn t.

Because of this substantial improvement in efficiency, the number of newly registered businesses has kept a fast pace of growth.

"Once the prices move outside of the reasonable range, (we will) take timely measures to regulate the prices," the NDRC said.

By 2025, the ministry will build about 100 model programs to encourage green freight delivery.