On the afternoon of March 3rd, the press conference of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The press spokesperson Liu Jie introduced the relevant information of the conference to the foreign and domestic media and answered questions from journalists on hot issues such as China's economic situation, scientific and technological innovation, and opening up to the outside world. As an important prelude to the National Two Sessions, this press conference not only sent out important signals for the macroeconomic development, but also sketched out the policy background for the development of multiple industrial fields. Among them, key words such as high-quality development, new quality productive forces, and green and low-carbon transformation provided guidance for the future development of China's non-ferrous metal industry.
The year 2026 marks the beginning of the "14th Five-Year Plan" and is also a significant milestone for China's modernization efforts. The National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference has been continuously providing suggestions and advice on issues such as high-quality development, the construction of modern industrial systems, and green transformation. These topics are highly consistent with the development direction of the non-ferrous metals industry. As an important part of the basic raw material industry, non-ferrous metals not only support strategic industries such as new energy, equipment manufacturing, and information technology, but also play a key role in the cultivation of new quality productive forces.
High-quality development and new quality productive forces have opened up new prospects for the non-ferrous metals industry. The press conference mentioned that in 2025, China's economy achieved a 5% growth in a complex environment, with the deep integration of science and technology with industries and the continuous growth of new quality productive forces. Currently, industries such as new energy, new materials, and high-end equipment are developing rapidly, and the demand for key metals such as copper, aluminum, nickel, and lithium continues to increase. With the accelerated layout of new energy vehicles, energy storage systems, and intelligent manufacturing, the importance of the non-ferrous metals industry chain has become more prominent. In the future, during the process of the country promoting the construction of a modern industrial system, the non-ferrous metals industry will upgrade from traditional resource-based industries to high-end material and technology-intensive industries.
The green and low-carbon transformation has become an important guiding principle for industry development. The press conference specifically mentioned that the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference has conducted special research on major issues such as the green and low-carbon transformation. For the non-ferrous metals industry, this is both a challenge and an opportunity. On one hand, traditional smelting industries have high energy consumption and large carbon emissions, and they need to achieve transformation through technological upgrades, energy-saving renovations, and the substitution of green energy; on the other hand, the green energy system itself is highly dependent on non-ferrous metal materials, such as in wind power, photovoltaics, energy storage, and power grid construction, which all require a large amount of copper, aluminum, and rare metals. It can be foreseen that in the context of the continuous advancement of the "carbon neutrality" goal, green smelting technologies, the utilization of recycled metals, and innovations in low-carbon materials will become new competition arenas for the industry.
The integration of technological innovation and industries will drive the upgrading of the value chain of non-ferrous metals. The press conference repeatedly emphasized the integrated reform of education, science and technology, and talent, as well as the strengthening of scientific and technological innovation as the leading force. For the non-ferrous metals industry, this means that industrial upgrading not only relies on resource advantages, but also on technological innovation. In recent years, high-performance aluminum alloys, rare earth functional materials, and advanced copper-based materials have emerged continuously, playing important roles in aerospace, new energy vehicles, and the electronics industry. In the future, through the deep integration of industry-university-research, the non-ferrous metals industry is expected to transform from a "raw material supplier" to a "key material solution provider".
Expanding high-level opening-up will also bring new development opportunities to the non-ferrous metals industry. The press conference mentioned the commissioning of the Hainan Free Trade Port and China's continuous expansion of institutional opening-up. Against the backdrop of increasingly close global resource allocation and industrial chain cooperation, Chinese non-ferrous metals enterprises will have broader space in overseas resource development, international trade and technological cooperation. At the same time, as the "Belt and Road" cooperation continues to advance, China's position in the global metal resource supply chain will also be further enhanced.
Overall, the press conference of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference conveyed a clear policy signal: with high-quality development as the main thread, with scientific and technological innovation as the driving force, and with green and low-carbon as the direction, we should accelerate the construction of a modern industrial system. This development framework provides a clear era reference for the non-ferrous metals industry. In the future, the industry should not only seize the historical opportunities brought by the growth in demand for new energy and new materials, but also actively promote technological upgrading and green transformation, and continuously enhance its core competitiveness in the global industrial competition.
With the convening of the National Two Sessions, more policy measures and industrial orientations will be gradually released. For the non-ferrous metals industry, how to achieve structural optimization, technological breakthroughs and green upgrading under the backdrop of high-quality development will become an important issue determining the future landscape of the industry.
