According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the United States exported 82 Mt (74 million short tons) of coal in 2015, i.e. 23% less than in 2014, due to a slower growth in global coal demand, lower international coal prices, and higher coal output in other coal-exporting countries. In addition, lower mining costs, cheaper transportation costs, and favourable exchange rates (compared to the US dollar) continue to provide an advantage to producers in other major coal-exporting countries such as Australia, Indonesia, Colombia, Russia, and South Africa.
US exports to India increased by nearly (2.2 Mt) (2 million short tons) in 2015 (9% of total US coal exports in 2015, up from 5% in 2014) and exports to the Netherlands also progressed. Exports to other European markets collapsed by nearly 21 Mt in 2015 (-6.1 Mt in the United Kingdom, -2.2 Mt in Italy, -1.1 Mt in Germany) and also contracted in Souh Korea, Japan, Brazil, Mexico and Canada.
The country remained a net exporter and imports were stable in 2015, despite significant changes in supplying countries: imports from Colombia rose by 8%, while those from Indonesia fell by 42%.