China is abundant in nonferrous metal resources which possess complete varieties. Currently, reserves of 7 metals including wolfram and rare earth rank the top globally; reserves of 5 metals, namely, lead, nickel, mercury, molybdenum and niobium are considerably plentiful. In recent years, the output of nonferrous metals maintains the rapid increase and the industry scale swiftly expands. In 2011, the output of China's ten major nonferrous metals (copper, aluminum, lead, zinc, nickel, tin, antimony, magnesium, titanium and mercury) was 34.38 million tons, increasing by 9.8% YOY. From January to October in 2012, the cumulative output of ten major nonferrous metals in China reached 30.52 million tons, increasing by 7.7% YOY.
Seen from regional characteristics of China's nonferrous metal industry, in terms of production, Henan, Yunnan, Hunan, Shandong and Inner Mongolia are five key regions for the production of China's nonferrous metals. In 2011, the output of nonferrous metals in the five regions accounted for 47.11% of the total output in the nation. Among it, the output of nonferrous metals in Henan ranked the top in China's nonferrous metal industry. Assets of China's nonferrous metal industry are mainly concentrated in Shandong, Henan, Jiangxi, Gansu, Jiangsu, etc.; Shandong, Jiangxi, Inner Mongolia, Henan, Jiangsu, etc. make more profits.
After lead futures was successfully listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Mar. 24, 2011, four major basic nonferrous metals in China were all listed on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. However, trade varieties of China's futures market still lag behind that of international markets.
In 2011, the total import & export trade amount of China's nonferrous metals reached an all-time high, achieving USD 160.7 billion, with an increase of 28% YOY. Among it, the import amount was USD 117.5 billion, increasing by 21% YOY; the export amount was USD 43.2 billion, increasing by 52.7% YOY. The deficit amount of import & export trade in the whole year was USD 74.4 billion, with a rise of 8% YOY. In terms of products, the import volume of copper, aluminum and lead smelting products all presented the declining trend. The import volume of bauxite sharply increased and the export volume of aluminum materials maintained the soaring momentum. However, in view of aggravated trade friction, it brings more difficulties to exports and the growth rate of raw material export amount will evidently drop.
China is to enter the mid-to-late industrialization. The nonferrous metal industry will usher in new market opportunities. At present, the consumption per capita of China's copper, aluminum and zinc is less than one-third of that in developed countries. Therefore, there is large space for the development of China's nonferrous metal market in the future.