According to the statistical classification of mineral reserves of China, metallic mineral resources can be divided into the following types: ferrous, nonferrous, precious, rare, rare-earth and dispersed-element.

The ferrous metallic mineral resources include Fe, Mn, Cr, V and Ti;the nonferrous embrace Cu, Pb, Zn, bauxite, Ni, W, Mg, Co, Sn, Bi, Mo, Hg and Sb;the precious comprise Au, Ag, and the Pt group (Pt, Pd, Ir, Rh, Ru and Os);the rare include Nb, Ta, Be, Li, Zr, Sr, Rb and Cs;the rare earths encompass Sc, LREEs (La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sa and Eu), and HREEs (Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tu, Yb, Lu and Y);the dispersed elements are Ge, Ga, In, Tl, Hf, Re, Cd, Se and Te.   

It should be pointed out that besides the above-mentioned metallic mineral resources, there are redioactive ones including U and Th, which have been discussed in Chapter 2 (Energy Resources) and thus no details on them will be given here.   

In addition, for the convenience of administration by corresponding industrial departments in China, titanium is incorporated in the nonferrous metal type. With respect to the production of nonferrous metals in China, a standardized expression is being used for 10 common nonferrous metals and 10 rare metals. The 10 common nonferrous metals refer to Cu, Al, Pb, Zn, Ni, Sn, Sb, Hg, Mg and Ti. The 10 rare metals, of which the standardized expression of production was determined at the National Conference on Nonferrous Metal Industry held in 1990, include wolfram concentrate, molybdenum concentrate, sponge tita-nium, rare earth metals and their respective compounds and semiconductor materials, tantalum, niobium, lithium, beryllium and zirconium.   

Metallic minerals are indispensable basic materials and important strategic substances for national economy, daily life, national defence industry, sophisticated technology and high-tech industry. Production of iron and steel and nonferrous metals of a country is generally considered as an indicator of the national strength of that country. In 1996, China's production of steel topped for the first time the high figure of 100 million tons, leaping to first place in the world; its production of the 10 common nonferrous metals in the same year reached 5.23 million tons, remaining second among the world's major producers; its production of gold was 128.05 tons in 1996 and hit 166.3 tons in 1997, an all-time high; and the actual production of rare earths of China, the major producer of these in the world, was almost equivalent to the world's total consumption.

The presently available metallic mineral resources and resultant high production capacity in China has laid a solid foundation for a healthy, sustainable development of the country's economy in the 21st century.