China's raw materials industry logs steady expansion over decade

BEIJING, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The value-added output of China's raw materials industry registered an annual average growth rate of 4.5 percent from 2012 to 2021, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said on Friday.

In the period, the sector's value-added output expanded from 6.9 trillion yuan (about 1 trillion U.S. dollars) to 10.7 trillion yuan, MIIT official Chen Kelong told a press conference.

Chen noted that China's outputs of several varieties of major raw materials, such as steel, copper, aluminum, cement and plate glass, have ranked first globally for many years.

The development of the new materials industry has accelerated, with output increasing from approximately 1 trillion yuan in 2012 to 5.9 trillion yuan in 2021, he said.

MIIT official Feng Meng said the ministry will take measures to ensure the production of bulk raw materials, providing support for industrial and supply chain security.