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China’s coal imports are likely to exceed last year’s tally, negating predictions that the government would cap purchases at 2018’s levels. This year, a slowing economy and the attraction of cheaper overseas coal are likely to steer policymakers away from a repeat of 2018’s curbs. Coal imports in the first nine months have already raced ahead of last year’s levels by 10%, suggesting it’ll be “difficult to have imports at the same level as last year, while a rise is highly possible,” according to Zeng Hao, an analyst at consultancy Fenwei Energy Information Services. The gain is all the more notable given rising domestic supply.