China halts North Korea coal imports after missile test

China will suspend all imports of coal from North Korea for the rest of the year, Beijing said Saturday, depriving Pyongyang of a crucial source of foreign exchange following its latest missile test. "(China) will temporarily stop its imports of coal from North Korea for the rest of this year (including coal for which customs applications have been made but not yet processed)," the commerce ministry said in a statement posted on its website.
The statement said the suspension was in accordance with existing UN sanctions imposed on North Korea over its nuclear and missile programmes and would come in to force on Sunday and remain until the end of the year. The decision came less than a week after North Korea's latest missile test, as tensions escalate over the reclusive state's defiance of UN resolutions.
The North's leader Kim Jong-Un has been trying to strengthen his grip on power in the face of growing international pressure over his country's nuclear and missile programmes. China's announcement came as investigators in Malaysia probe the assassination of Kim's half-brother on Monday, which Seoul says was carried out by female agents on the orders of Pyongyang. North Korea's launch came just after a conciliatory phone chat between US President Donald Trump and his counterpart Xi Jinping of China - the North's only major ally.er 31.