China has issued its first batch of coal export quotas for 2010 at 25.5 million tonnes, expected to account for about half of total quotas for the year, trade sources said on Wednesday.

China's top two coal exporters, Shenhua Group and China National Coal Group, each received export quotas of 10.45 million tonnes, the sources said.

China issued a total of 51 million tonnes of export quotas for 2009, but coal exports plummeted because of weak demand in the overseas market and high domestic prices.

China's coal exports in the first 11 months of the year totalled 20.3 million tonnes, down 50 percent from a year earlier.

"Exports of thermal coal may improve after the Lunar New Year, as demand from Japanese and Korean clients is expected to improve," said a Beijing-based trader.