BEIJING: China concluded the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) with reserves of 14 minerals and production of 17 types leading the world, while discovering 398 large and medium-sized strategic mineral deposits, including 225 oil and gas fields, officials said on Wednesday.
According to senior officials within the Ministry of Natural Resources, the gains have strengthened the country’s energy security and resource self-sufficiency.
“This has significantly enhanced the national capacity for resource self-sufficiency, supported the construction and consolidation of 198 energy resource bases, and strengthened China’s position and competitiveness in the global mining industry,” said Xiong Zili, director of the ministry’s department of geological exploration management, at a news conference in Beijing.
Xiong emphasized that mineral resources provide a critical material foundation for economic and social development, with exploration and development tied closely to the national economy, livelihoods and security.
By the end of 2025, China held the world’s largest reserves of several minerals, including rare earths, tungsten, tin, molybdenum, antimony, gallium, germanium, indium, fluorite and graphite. Reserves of nine other minerals — including coal, iron, manganese and titanium — featured among the top four rankings globally.
Xiong attributed the increase in reserves to systematic exploration efforts targeting both scarce and advantageous minerals, laying a solid foundation for resource security.
China also led the world in mineral production and metallurgical processing — methods involved in the extraction and purification of metals from ores and other material — with its industrial chain dominant position continuing to strengthen.
In 2025, China led global production in 17 minerals, including coal, vanadium, titanium, zinc, rare earths, tungsten, tin, molybdenum, antimony, gallium, indium, gold, tellurium, phosphorus, fluorite and graphite. Output of 11 of these — such as rare earths, tungsten, antimony, gallium, indium and tellurium — accounted for more than half of the global total.
The country also demonstrated a strong advantage in metallurgical processing, with output of more than 30 products leading the world. Seventeen of these products — including manganese, rare earths, aluminum, steel and copper — accounted for about half of global production. –The Daily Mail-China Daily news exchange item
