Briefly

Shanxi produces 678m tons of raw coal

China's coal-rich province of Shanxi saw its raw coal output in the first half approach 680 million metric tons, local authorities said. The coal output in Shanxi, the country's largest coal-producing region, accounted for about 29.5 percent of the country's total during the January-June period, said the provincial statistics bureau. As the peak electricity consumption season nears, Shanxi has increased its coal production, with about 2 million tons of coal transported to locations across the country every day.

CCB ups loan support for manufacturing

China Construction Bank, one of the country's largest State-owned commercial banks, has enhanced financial support for the manufacturing sector. CCB said that by the end of June, its outstanding loans to the manufacturing sector exceeded 2.7 trillion yuan ($377.85 billion), expanding 21.4 percent compared with a year earlier. The lender's outstanding medium- and long-term loans to the sector exceeded 1.36 trillion yuan at end-June, rising 36.23 percent year-on-year. To meet the financial needs of advanced manufacturing enterprises, strategic emerging industries and high-tech firms, the bank's outstanding loans to specialized and innovative firms increased 35 percent year-on-year to over 250 billion yuan.

Xinhua - China Daily