As a globally renowned manufacturing base, “rubber tires” emerged as a high-frequency term in the report. In the section titled “Implementation of the 2020 National Economic and Social Development Plan,” the report stated: (1) Focusing on industrial transformation and upgrading, three three-year action plans were formulated and launched—namely, “Leading Industries + Artificial Intelligence,” “Chemical Industry Transformation and Upgrading,” and “Tire Industry Consolidation and Restructuring”—further clarifying the direction, pathways, and priorities for reforming the industrial economy. (2) Innovating new business models, the region hosted the world’s first online tire exhibition, attracting over 500 participating companies, facilitating more than 80 preliminary trade orders, and generating intended transaction values totaling RMB 2.5 billion. (3) Reform and opening-up continued to deepen, with innovation vitality steadily strengthening. Orderly efforts were made to promote mergers and reorganizations among tire enterprises; to date, a total of 10 such consolidations have been completed across the county. The production capacity of six leading enterprises now accounts for nearly 80% of the county’s total, while four firms have ranked among the global top 75 tire manufacturers. Furthermore, the rubber tire industry has been included in Shandong Province’s “Top Ten” industries’ “goose‑formation” cluster and specialized industrial clusters. Leveraging the roles of the Guangrao–Wuhan University of Technology Chemical Research Institute and the Qingdao University of Science and Technology Guangrao Rubber Industry Research Institute, 32 scientific and technological achievements have been successfully commercialized. In addition, major talent‑related events, such as the Fifth High‑Level Talent Symposium on the Rubber Tire and Automotive Parts Industries, were meticulously organized, resulting in the recruitment of 25 high‑caliber individuals (or teams), including three academicians and three national-level leading talents. In the section titled “Key Measures for Achieving the 2021 Plan,” the report emphasized making every effort to drive transformation and build a modern industrial system: First, intensifying project development: Adhering to a risk‑averse mindset and firmly anchoring annual targets, while maintaining routine epidemic prevention and control measures, the region steadfastly upheld the principle that “projects are paramount.” Concentrated efforts were directed toward advancing 232 key projects with a total investment of RMB 134.1 billion and planned annual investments of RMB 25.6 billion. Priority was given to accelerating major projects such as Jiamei Rubber’s smart manufacturing facility capable of producing 5 million tires annually, ensuring their timely implementation and early operational effectiveness. Second, vigorously promoting transformation and upgrading: Accelerating the consolidation and restructuring of the rubber tire industry, fully leveraging its comparative advantages in overall production capacity and product quality, and actively engaging with leading enterprises in the sector. The goal is to cultivate, within three years, three to five companies that rank among the global leaders in the tire industry.

The National Cultural Heritage Administration has released updates on major “Archaeology China” projects. At the Sanxingdui site in Guanghan, Sichuan, newly discovered sacrificial pits have yielded over 500 significant artifacts, including fragments of gold masks, a massive bronze mask, a bronze sacred tree, and ivory. During this latest phase of excavation at Sanxingdui, 3D printing combined with silicone‑gel protective sleeves was applied for the first time to artifact extraction—a groundbreaking innovation in the field of archaeology. In this new round of archaeological work at Sanxingdui, cutting‑edge 3D‑printing technology was employed: a 3D scanner captured detailed data on the artifacts and their surrounding context, which was then used to produce an exact plaster replica via a 3D printer. This plaster model was subsequently fashioned into a tightly fitting, highly protective silicone sleeve. Once the sleeve was securely affixed to the artifact, it was carefully extracted using a containment box. Compared with traditional methods such as wrapping in plastic film or soft cloth, the 3D‑printed protective sleeve offers superior protection. Its adhesive properties provide optimal safeguarding for large bronze vessels. According to experts, this marks the first time that 3D‑printing technology has been utilized in artifact extraction within China—an innovative approach. Given that the Sanxingdui artifacts have lain buried underground for more than 3,000 years, they are particularly fragile and susceptible to damage even with minimal handling. The vessel now being extracted, along with the fill material inside, weighs approximately 1,000 jin, necessitating extreme care during the retrieval process. Previously, artifacts were typically extracted by wrapping them in plastic film or soft cloth; in contrast, the silicone sleeve conforms more closely to the artifact’s surface and, thanks to its inherent tackiness, adheres more effectively, providing enhanced protection.

According to industry-wide statistics, the rubber additives sector faced significant challenges in the first half of 2020, particularly due to a sharp decline in product prices. In the second half, as market demand picked up, overall operations improved markedly; by December, many companies were operating at full capacity, and the sector’s profitability rebounded rapidly across the board. Thanks to last year’s low base and the continued upward trend in production and sales observed in the first quarter of this year, growth rates were notably strong. Yanggu Huatai reported in its Q1 results that orders were fully booked and production lines operated at full capacity, generating revenue of RMB 589 million—a 44.30% year-on-year increase (the same applies hereafter). Net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company reached RMB 88.625 million, up 1,719.56%. However, in 2020, Yanggu Huatai’s total revenue stood at RMB 1.943 billion, down 3.52%, while net profit attributable to shareholders fell 31.77% to RMB 126 million. Based on these figures from listed companies, it appears that the rubber additives industry is expected to perform better this year than in the previous year. According to data from the China Rubber Industry Association, during January–February, member enterprises recorded sales revenue of RMB 3.635 billion, a 33.42% year-on-year increase; total output of rubber additives reached 225,800 tons, up 35.32%; export delivery value rose 46.51%, with an export ratio (by value) of 29.37%, an improvement of 2.62 percentage points. Analysts anticipate that China’s economy will follow a “high‑in‑the‑front, low‑in‑the‑back” trajectory this year, with growth decelerating quarter by quarter. Consequently, rubber additives manufacturers expect the industry’s outlook to stabilize going forward. At the same time, companies emphasize that, amid growing market uncertainties and heightened risks, end‑users should not rely solely on lower raw material costs to boost profits. Instead, they should strive to capture value through market dynamics, cultivate strong supplier relationships, and forge strategic partnerships to achieve mutually beneficial development.

1915: The Guangdong Brothers Rubber Manufacturing Company was established, producing rubber dentures and rubber shoe soles, becoming the first rubber manufacturing plant in China. 1934: Shanghai Dazhonghua Rubber Factory, building on its production of bicycle tires, began trial production of automobile tires. Initially, it procured Japanese equipment to conduct test runs in Kobe; the following year, it returned to China to formally establish a dedicated workshop, producing the country’s first automobile tire, named “Shuangqian.” The product came in two specifications—30×5 and 32×9—with a daily output of 7–9 tires. 1951: The State-owned No. 1 Rubber Factory developed bulletproof self-sealing tires and produced 600 units for use by the Chinese People’s Volunteer Army. At its 100th meeting, the Government Administration Council adopted the “Decision on Cultivating Rubber Trees,” initiating rubber tree planting in Guangdong, Guangxi, Yunnan, and Fujian provinces. In Hainan, military and civilian efforts were launched to cultivate and process natural rubber. 1956: At its 40th session, the Standing Committee of the First National People’s Congress decided to merge the former Chemical Industry Administration of the Ministry of Heavy Industry, the Pharmaceutical Industry Administration of the Ministry of Light Industry, and the Rubber Industry Administration into the Ministry of Chemical Industry of the People’s Republic of China (referred to as the Ministry of Chemical Industry), appointing Peng Tao as Minister. 1958: China’s independently developed 2,000-ton-per-year chloroprene rubber production facility was completed and put into operation at the Changshou Chemical Plant, producing the nation’s first batch of synthetic rubber. 1960: The Lanzhou Synthetic Rubber Plant was completed and commissioned, producing the country’s first batch of styrene-butadiene rubber. 1964: Shanghai Dazhonghua Rubber Factory developed China’s first 9.00R20 all-steel radial tire. Following successful trials with steel-belted bias-ply tires, the factory embarked on developing all-steel radial tires. With no existing documentation or equipment available, engineers relied on a single photograph of a radial tire forming drum to design and fabricate their own prototype, continuously refining it through repeated testing. After numerous experiments and improvements, they finally succeeded in producing China’s first “Shuangqian” brand all-steel radial tire. 1966: The State Science and Technology Commission, the Ministry of Petroleum, and the Ministry of Chemical Industry jointly organized a major technological campaign focused on butadiene rubber. Using Jinzhou Petrochemical Plant No. 6 as the primary site, they successfully developed butadiene rubber from butadiene feedstock and built an industrial plant capable of producing 1,000 tons per year. 1982: Shanghai Zhengtai Rubber Factory imported a second-hand production line from Germany’s Maizler, capable of producing 500,000 passenger car radial tires annually. With strong support from institutions such as the Beijing Rubber Industry Research and Design Institute, the “Huilì” brand passenger car radial tire was successfully launched and certified, supplying tires for Volkswagen’s Santana model. 1985: A breakthrough in new technologies for producing butadiene rubber earned the “Special Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award” for that year. 1989: The Ministry of Chemical Industry issued the “Measures for Implementing the Decision of the State Council on Key Current Industrial Policies (Trial),” establishing an internal priority order for chemical industry development: agricultural chemical industry, raw materials chemical industry, fine chemical industry, and rubber processing industry. 1993: A large-scale domestically produced radial tire production line was completed and put into operation at the Rongcheng Rubber Factory in Shandong Province. The “Large-Scale Construction Machinery Tire,” a key national science and technology project under the Eighth Five-Year Plan, manufactured by the Henan Tire Factory, passed national acceptance and entered mass production, achieving international advanced quality standards. 1995: The Yanshan Petrochemical MTBE cracking unit for producing polymer-grade isobutylene was completed and commissioned, providing an economical and reliable source of raw material for butyl rubber production. In December 1999, a 30,000-ton-per-year butyl rubber production facility utilizing Italian PI technology was also brought online, ending China’s complete reliance on imported butyl rubber. 1996: Yanshan Petrochemical constructed a 10,000-ton-per-year solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene rubber (SSBR) production plant—the first of its kind in China using solution polymerization technology. 1999: Responding to market demand, Tianjin Tire Company developed a large agricultural radial tire using domestic technology. After nearly a year of intensive research and trial production, the first “Haidun” brand 12.4R28 agricultural radial tire rolled off the assembly line, paving a new path toward radialization of agricultural tires in China. By 2014, approximately four enterprises nationwide were producing agricultural radial tires, with an annual output reaching 37,000 units. 2002: Shanghai Tire & Rubber (Group) Co., Ltd.’s Shuangqian Heavy-Duty Tire Company, drawing on expertise in heavy-duty radial tires, independently developed China’s first “Shuangqian” brand engineering machinery radial tire—14.00R24-20PR (tubeless)—marking the beginning of domestically produced engineering machinery radial tires. 2008: The giant engineering radial tire technology and equipment development project jointly completed by Shandong Sanjiao Group Co., Ltd. and Tianjin Sai’ang Technology Co., Ltd. won the First Prize of the National Science and Technology Progress Award for 2007. Lanzhou Petrochemical Company commenced chemical feeding operations at its 100,000-ton-per-year styrene-butadiene rubber plant, making it the largest domestically built styrene-butadiene rubber production facility entirely based on indigenous technology. China’s first “Sanhuan” brand aviation radial tire successfully passed all dynamic tests stipulated by national standards, meeting installation requirements. This achievement made China the fourth country in the world capable of researching, manufacturing, and testing aviation radial tires. That same year, a domestically produced aircraft equipped with this type of tire made its maiden flight. 2009: The Qilu Branch of Sinopec commissioned a styrene-butadiene rubber production plant, bringing the total annual capacity of the company’s styrene-butadiene rubber facilities to 230,000 tons—an unprecedented scale at the time, entirely powered by domestically developed technologies. A joint venture between China’s Blue Star Shanxi Synthetic Rubber Group Co., Ltd. and Armenia’s Irith Company—the largest Sino‑Armenian joint project—built a 30,000-ton-per-year chloroprene rubber production facility, producing SN232 grade qualified chloroprene rubber products. PetroChina Lanzhou Petrochemical Company completed and commissioned a 50,000-ton-per-year nitrile rubber production plant, fully utilizing domestically owned intellectual property technologies. 2010: Shandong Yuhuang Chemical Co., Ltd. brought online an 80,000-ton-per-year butadiene rubber production plant—the first large-scale synthetic rubber facility built by a private enterprise in China. Maoming Luhua Chemical Co., Ltd. completed and commissioned a 15,000-ton-per-year isoprene rubber production plant, entirely based on independently developed technologies, filling a critical gap in domestic isoprene rubber production. 2013: A 15,000-ton-per-year trans‑isoprene rubber production plant was completed and put into operation—the world’s first industrial-scale facility of its kind. 2015: A thousand-ton hydrogenated nitrile rubber production plant was completed and commissioned in Jiaxing, Zhejiang, ending China’s historical dependence on imported hydrogenated nitrile rubber. With this milestone, China became the third country globally to possess independent intellectual property rights for the industrial production of hydrogenated nitrile rubber. Excerpted from “Chronicles of Major Events in China’s Rubber Industry” and “A Century of Development in the Chemical Industry.”

The implementation of a tight monetary policy has led to rigid procurement and settlement practices, placing immense cost and liquidity pressures on tire manufacturers. Key raw materials for tire production—such as natural rubber, synthetic rubber, steel wire, steel cord, various chemical additives, and coal—are repeatedly hitting record highs, while supply remains severely constrained. The average price of imported #20 standard rubber was $2,051 per ton in 2007; by early this year, it had risen to $2,200 per ton, reached $2,800 per ton by late April, and stood at $3,280 per ton as of June 18—more than a 49% increase compared with the beginning of the year. Domestic #5 rubber averaged 19,341 yuan per ton in 2007; by early this year, the price had climbed to 20,400 yuan per ton, surged to 23,000 yuan per ton by late April, and hit 28,000 yuan per ton by June 18—an increase of over 37% since the start of the year. Chlorinated butyl rubber averaged 48,800 yuan per ton in 2007 and at the beginning of 2008; by late April, its price had jumped to 79,000 yuan per ton, and by June 18 it had reached 100,000 yuan per ton—more than a 104% rise from the start of the year. Re‑tempered steel wire averaged 6,000 yuan per ton in 2007; by early this year, the price had increased to 6,700 yuan per ton, rose to 8,000 yuan per ton by late April, and stood at 10,500 yuan per ton by June 18—a more than 56% increase from the beginning of the year. By June 18, prices for various auxiliary materials had all risen by more than 30% compared with the start of the year. Overall, the current prices of raw and auxiliary materials represent a comprehensive increase of over 40% compared with the 2007 average, directly driving up tire production costs by more than 25%.