Bloomberg, 18 Feb 2008

Benchmark Asia, Europe Coal Rise to Records on Disruptions.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?p...d=aDEg4o8vJVE8

Coal from Richards Bay, South Africa, the source of more than a quarter of coal burned in Europe for power, advanced $5.70, or 5.2 percent, to an average of $115.90 a metric ton in the week ended Feb. 15, according to McCloskey. Prices at Newcastle, Australia, a benchmark for Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, gained $13.68, or 11 percent, to $139.16 a ton, according to the globalCOAL NEWC Index.
Deutsche Welle, Feb 12, 2008 (English)

Could an Independent Kosovo Sustain Itself Economically?

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,...122353,00.html

Kosovo sits on an estimated 15 billion tons of coal.
However, behind all the hope and optimism which stirs in the province ahead of the declaration there is still some uncertainty over whether Kosovo -- known during the Cold War as "Yugoslavia's poorhouse" -- will be able to support itself economically as a new nation state.

Even today, Kosovo rates as one of the poorest regions in Europe. According to the World Bank, the average annual salary for the population is 1,243 euros ($1,803). It reports that 37 percent of the population lives in poverty and survives on less than 1.42 euros a day.