Summary：SHANGHAI - China has raised the price of railway freight by a higher-than-expected 13 per cent to help operators...

SHANGHAI - China has raised the price of railway freight by a higher-than-expected 13 per cent to help operators cope with rising operating costs, sources linked to the country's top planning agency told the official Shanghai Securities News on Wednesday.

The increase, which comes into effect from today, will help boost earnings for Chinese rail operators, such as Daqin Railway Co Ltd and Guangshen Railway Co Ltd, but lift the cost to transport commodities such as coal.

About half of China's annual 3.7 billion tonnes of coal ouput is transported by rail.

A source close to the National Development and Reform Commission, China's top economic planner, said prices would rise by 0.015 yuan per tonne per km, the eighth price rise since 2003.