On April 29, the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association held a press conference on the economic operation of the nonferrous metals industry in Q1 2025. At the conference, Li Yusheng, Director of the Policy Research Office of the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, responded to questions from a reporter from the *Resource Recycling* magazine regarding the upgrading of the secondary metal industry and the construction of an international resource collaboration system.
Li Yusheng introduced that the *Government Work Report* at the 2025 Two Sessions made new arrangements for the continuous deepening of the development of the resource recycling industry, namely, "strengthening the recycling of waste materials, vigorously promoting the use of secondary materials, and promoting the development of the circular economy." The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the Ministry of Finance issued the *Notice on Intensifying and Expanding the Implementation of Large-Scale Equipment Replacement and Consumer Goods Trade-in Policies in 2025*, implementing special actions to promote the application of secondary materials and supporting producers of automobiles, electrical and electronic products, etc., to increase the proportion of secondary materials used. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), in conjunction with multiple departments, issued the *Implementation Plan for High-Quality Development of the Copper Industry (2025-2027)* and the *Implementation Plan for High-Quality Development of the Aluminum Industry (2025-2027)*, proposing to strengthen the processing and distribution capacity of copper and aluminum scrap, promote the standardized recycling and refined sorting of raw materials, encourage the import of qualified secondary copper and aluminum raw materials, support copper smelters and copper and aluminum processing enterprises to increase the proportion of secondary copper and aluminum used, and promote high-value utilization.
In terms of encouraging technological innovation, the NDRC and other departments issued the *Green Technology Promotion Catalogue (2024 Edition)*, which includes technologies such as "comprehensive recycling and utilization technology for waste lithium-ion batteries," "comprehensive utilization technology for arsenic-containing waste residues from gold and copper smelting," and "clean recovery technology for valuable components from waste power batteries," among others. Financial institutions are encouraged to strengthen financing support for the application of green technologies listed in the *Catalogue* through green credit, green bonds, carbon emission reduction support tools, etc.
Li Yusheng stated that in 2024, China's production of secondary nonferrous metals reached 19.15 million mt, ranking first in the world for 15 consecutive years. The physical content of imported secondary copper and aluminum raw materials exceeded 4 million mt, accounting for 23% of the total supply of raw materials, a decrease of 1.7 percentage points compared to 2023. A raw material supply structure has been basically formed, with domestic recycling as the main source and imports as an important supplement. At the same time, China is actively constructing a more resilient international resource collaboration system to reduce the impact of external risks.
1. Import management policies are continuously improved, and the variety of imported products is increasing. The new version of the announcement on the import management of secondary copper and aluminum raw materials and relevant customs inspection procedures have been implemented since November 2024, adding the import of secondary copper alloys such as brass, bronze, white copper, and high-copper alloys, as well as secondary wrought aluminum alloys and secondary pure aluminum raw materials that meet the index requirements. The announcement on the import management of secondary black mass raw materials for lithium-ion batteries has completed the solicitation of opinions, and secondary black mass raw materials that meet the standards will be included in the category of free imports. In addition, the import management policy for spent target materials after sputtering is also being orderly promoted, aiming to recycle and reuse critical strategic metal resources such as tantalum, cobalt, nickel, tungsten, molybdenum, and vanadium.
2. Establish recycling plants abroad to expand the coverage of the recycling network. Following the establishment of dismantling, sorting, and recycling production lines for secondary nonferrous metal raw materials by Chinese enterprises in Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, and Cambodia, Chinese enterprises have begun to establish sorting plants in countries such as Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Indonesia to recycle secondary nonferrous metal resources, greatly expanding the sources of international secondary raw materials and enhancing the resilience of overseas secondary resource supplies.
3. The number of countries from which raw materials are imported has increased, and the sources of secondary raw materials have become more diverse. Taking the import of secondary aluminum raw materials as an example, the number of importing countries and regions has increased to 95, an increase of 6 compared to 2023. The number of countries and regions importing more than 10,000 mt of secondary aluminum has reached 22, an increase of 4 compared to 2023.
4. Customs further optimizes the business environment at ports to facilitate customs clearance. The General Administration of Customs has carried out pilot projects for the transshipment of secondary metal raw materials in inland areas, creating favorable conditions for importing enterprises to reduce transportation and logistics costs and improve customs clearance efficiency. At the same time, it has comprehensively promoted the construction of smart customs and introduced 16 specific measures to "optimize processes, simplify procedures, and improve efficiency," helping enterprises reduce costs, increase vitality, and continuously enhance the level of cross-border trade facilitation.
