Advanced Materials
新材料
Spanning carbon fiber, rare earth processing, specialty chemicals, and nanomaterials, China is systematically building dominance in the materials that underpin all advanced manufacturing.
Hubs
17
cities with this sector
Total Output
¥1448B
combined industry output
Companies
10,505
across all hubs
Employment
1195K
workers in sector
Key Statistics
Rare earth processing share
~90%
2023
Carbon fiber production
55,000 tonnes
2023
New materials market
¥7.5T
2023
Global Context
China processes ~90% of global rare earths and is the largest producer of carbon fiber, lithium compounds, and silicon wafers.
Hub Rankings
Foshan佛山
Tier 2steadyAdvanced ceramics, building materials, hydrogen energy materials, aluminum alloys
Shenyang沈阳
Tier 2steadyIndustrial machine tools, compressors, heavy mining equipment, tunnel boring machines, power equipment
Xuzhou徐州
Tier 2steadyConstruction engineering machinery: cranes, excavators, loaders, road machinery, concrete machinery, TBMs
Yulin榆林
Tier 3rapidModern coal chemical industry: coal-to-olefins, coal-to-ethylene glycol, coal-to-oil, coal-based new materials
Suzhou苏州
Tier 2steadyNanomaterials, specialty chemicals, electronic materials
Baotou包头
Tier 3emergingSilicon-based new materials, semiconductor silicon, organic silicon
Ningbo宁波
Tier 2steadyRare earth magnetic materials (NdFeB), specialty alloys, precision mold materials
Zhuzhou株洲
Tier 3steadyHard alloys, specialty ceramics, rail-grade materials
Changsha长沙
Tier 2steadyHard alloy materials, construction-grade advanced composites, tungsten carbide
Qingdao青岛
Tier 2steadyMarine engineering materials, smart manufacturing composites, rubber and polymer materials
Yichang宜昌
Tier 3emergingBattery-grade phosphate materials, advanced fine chemicals, electronic chemicals
Luoyang洛阳
Tier 3steadySpecialty glass, defense-grade optics, bearings and gear alloys, display substrates
Liyang溧阳
Tier 4steadyHigh-end stainless steel at scale, feeding both the battery and equipment supply chains. Also lithium battery copper foil, advanced ceramics, new building materials
Zibo淄博
Tier 3steadyFunctional ceramics, industrial ceramics, specialty glass fiber, piezoelectric materials
Meizhou梅州
Tier 3emergingElectrolytic copper foil, PCB substrates, copper alloys, battery anode materials
Shaoxing绍兴
Tier 3steadyPharmaceutical intermediates, electronic chemicals, specialty fine chemicals
Quzhou衢州
Tier 4emergingFluorine chemicals for semiconductors and batteries, electronic-grade materials
Policy Drivers
- New Materials Industry Development Guide
- Critical minerals export controls
- National key materials programs
Key Companies
World's largest display panel manufacturer, with its most advanced Gen-10.5 LCD and OLED production lines in Hefei.
Hefei, Anhui →CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive
中车株洲电力机车
Producer of high-speed train power systems, electric locomotives, and IGBT power semiconductors.
Zhuzhou, Hunan →Leading producer of IGBT power semiconductor modules for rail, EVs, and renewable energy, a subsidiary of CRRC.
Zhuzhou, Hunan →CRRC ZELC (Zhuzhou in Changsha)
中车株机(长沙基地)
CRRC's Changsha operations producing maglev trains, autonomous trams, and expanding into low-altitude economy transit solutions.
Changsha, Hunan →Leading producer of lithium battery anode and cathode materials, also a major LCD polarizer film manufacturer after acquiring LG Chem's business.
Ningbo, Zhejiang →Ningbo Jianfeng
宁波金田铜业
Major producer of rare earth permanent magnets (NdFeB) used in EV motors, wind turbines, and industrial robotics.
Ningbo, Zhejiang →Historic producer of CNC machine tools and precision equipment, representative of Dalian's deep legacy in precision manufacturing.
Dalian, Liaoning →World's largest residential air conditioning manufacturer, diversifying into precision molds, robotics, and new energy.
Zhuhai, Guangdong →Shenyang Machine Tool
沈阳机床
"National Team" of industrial machine tools; National Excellence-level Smart Factory and 5G Factory (2024). Produces 5-coordinate CNC machining centers for China's push toward industrial mother machine self-reliance.
Shenyang, Liaoning →Shenyang Blower Works
沈鼓集团
National "chokepoint" technology leader producing compressors, blowers, and pumps for petrochemical, power, and nuclear industries. Developed China's first 100,000-grade air separation compressor and nuclear main pumps for Guohe-1 and Hualong-1.
Shenyang, Liaoning →Northern Heavy Industries
北方重工
"China's Heavy Machinery Cradle." Produces heavy mining equipment, TBMs, and cement equipment. Mixed-ownership reform with Fangda Group (2019). Broke foreign monopoly in domestically produced shield machine main bearings.
Shenyang, Liaoning →World's #3 construction machinery manufacturer. 17 product categories ranked #1 domestically; 90%+ full-chain autonomous control rate. Built the world's largest 4,000-ton crawler crane and world's first 4,000-ton all-terrain crane.
Xuzhou, Jiangsu →Shaanxi Coal Yulin Chemical
陕煤榆林化学
World's largest coal-to-ethylene glycol project (1.8M tons/year) — 1/5 of national capacity, 1/3 of national output. 1500万吨/年 coal quality clean conversion project (world's largest under construction).
Yulin, Shaanxi →CHN Energy Yulin Chemical
国能榆林化工
Global first 50,000 tons/year coal-based PGA (polyglycolic acid) biodegradable material demonstration. Coal-to-olefins with international leading energy efficiency.
Yulin, Shaanxi →Yanchang Petroleum Yulin Coal Chemical
延长石油榆林煤化
850,000 tons/year methanol, 400,000 tons/year acetic acid. Building domestic first "coal-methanol-ethanol-vinyl acetate-POE" full chain.
Yulin, Shaanxi →