Lead is one of the metals extracted earlier by mankind from lead-zinc ore. It is the softest heavy metal as well as one of the metals with high specific gravity. The metal has good malleability and is easy to mix with other metals (e.g. zinc, tin, antimony, arsenic etc.) to make alloys.

Zinc, which was extracted later from lead-zinc ore, is the last extracted metal among the seven nonferrous metals (copper, tin, lead, gold, silver, mercury and zinc) of ancient times. This metal can mix with two or more nonferrous metals to make alloys or zinc-bearing alloys, of which the most important is brass, an alloy of zinc with copper, tin and lead. It can also mix with aluminum, magnesium and copper to form a diecasting alloy.

Lead and zinc have wide uses. They can be used in the electric, machine-building, metallurgy, chemical, light and pharmaceutical industries. In addition, lead is also involved in the nuclear and petroleum industries.

Lead and zinc are very intimately associated in nature, especially in primary mineral deposits. They have common sources of ore-forming substances and very similar geochemical behaviors. Up to now more than 250 lead-zinc minerals have been found and about 1/3 of them are sulfides and sulfates. Galena and sphalerite are the principal industrial materials from which the two metals are extracted.

The ancestors of the Chinese nation had made important contributions to mining, smelting and utilization of lead-zinc ores. As early as the 16th century B.C., lead had been used in the founding of bronze wares in China. China is also the earliest country that invented zinc smelting technology.

Before the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the foundation of China's lead and zinc industries was weak and there were only a few small mines and plants. The ores were generally mined, dressed and smelted with indigenous methods. The highest annual production was 8,900 tons of lead and 7,100 tons of zinc. Since 1949 the lead-zinc industry has developed rapidly. After over 40 years of large-scale geological exploration, abundant lead and zinc resources have been found, large numbers of state-owned large and medium-sized lead-zinc mines and smelting plant constructed and large production capacity (including mining, dressing and smelting capacities) formed. Its production now ranks in the forefront of the world. In 1996, the production of lead concentrates (metal content; the same hereinafter) was 643,000 tons and that of zinc concentrates (metal content; the same hereinafter) was 1.121 million tons; the production of lead metal (containing minerals) was 706,000 tons, ranking second in the world, and that of zinc metal (containing minerals) was 1.184 million tons, ranking first in the world. The productions of the two metals now cannot only meet the domestic demand but their products can also be exported. China has been one of the major lead and zinc producers in the world.