China’s booming coal industry draws increasing interest from American investors

As China’s appetite for coal is booming, American investors and businesses are cashing in.

American pension and mutual fund money is being invested in the Chinese coal industry, which is lucrative but has a poor record for pollution and worker safety.
Look no further than China Shenhua Energy Co., the Beijing giant that produces about 170 million tons of coal a year from 21 mines and builds power plants. While about 80 percent of the company’s stock is owned by Shenhua Group in Beijing, the rest of its shareholders reads like a who’s who of U.S. investors: Fidelity Investments, OppenheimerFunds, Merrill Lynch, even the Teachers Retirement System of Texas.

The performance of Shenhua’s Hong Kong-listed shares explains why U.S. investors love Chinese coal. Shenhua gained almost 65 percent from July through September, while American company Peabody — a favorite of analysts who follow U.S. coal companies — lost more than 3 percent over the same period. Shenhua’s initial public offering in Shanghai in September raised $8.9 billion (€6.25 billion), a record for mainland China.

U.S. investment in the likes of Shenhua has gone largely unnoticed. Individual investors such as the retired Texas teachers probably don’t know their money is going into Chinese coal stocks, says corporate government expert Nell Minow.

International Herald Tribune