With 722,800 tons of coal traded on its first dealing day, China Taiyuan Coal Transaction Center, the first of its kind in China, announced that it officially began operations Thursday, which totaled 695.96 million yuan (about 110.5 million U.S.dollars).

Located in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi, China's major coal producing-province, the center is a trading platform for coal commodities, said Qu Jiawu, director of the center.

"The center will be a good combination of government control and market activities," said Qu.

All coal enterprises in Shanxi, which have to transport their coal products by rail, are asked to trade 95 percent of their product on the center platform, which can accommodate a range of activities, including signing contracts and arranging settlements.

The transactions at the center will have three modules -- annual trade, daily trade, and special trade, said Qu, adding that it will greatly improve transaction efficiency.

Coal production in Shanxi accounts for almost a quarter of the country's total.

Source:china