China retained its position as a net coal exporter for 2007, with coal exports exceeding imports by 2.15 million metric tons, preliminary data from the General Administration of Customs showed Tuesday.

China exported 53.17 million tons of coal in 2007, down 16% on year, while coal imports for the full year totaled 51.02 million tons, up 33.9%, the data showed.

In December, China exported 5.73 million tons of coal, exceeding its imports of 4.33 million tons. The Administration didn't provide year-ago data.

China exported 15.3 million tons of coke and semi-coke for 2007, up 5.8% from a year earlier, while coke exports for December totaled 970,000 tons.