On November 19th, the Symposium of the Yangtze River Delta Coordinated Development Working Committee, hosted by China National Association of Metal Material Trade(CAMT), was convened at the Fortune Hotel in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province. Nearly 20 heads of industry associations (chambers of commerce) from the Yangtze River Delta region gathered to deliberate on strategies for regional coordinated development.

Chen Leiming, Executive President and Secretary-General of CAMT, presided over the meeting and delivered an opening address. He noted that the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) region, as one of the most economically vibrant, highly open, and innovation-driven regions in China, serves as a strategic fulcrum in the national modernization drive and the all-round opening-up landscape. Boasting a solid manufacturing foundation and robust steel demand, the region has developed a steel industry chain and supply chain system characterized by completeness, distinctiveness, and dynamic innovation after years of evolution.

The CAMT’s initiation of the "Yangtze River Delta Coordinated Development Working Committee" responds not only to the demands of member enterprises for deeper regional cooperation but also aims to advance the YRD steel industry chain and supply chain toward higher-level coordination. Specifically, by strengthening cluster innovation capacity building and enhancing regional core competitiveness, the initiative seeks to further elevate the industry’s agglomeration level and collaborative efficiency, thereby providing guiding support for the high-quality development of steel supply chain enterprises in the YRD.

Additionally, he emphasized that the Working Committee will systematically summarize the advanced strategic thinking, management models, and innovative practices of the YRD, promote their replication across the industry, and contribute a "Yangtze River Delta Model" to the coordinated development of the national steel supply chain.

Zhang Yanju, Deputy Secretary-General of China National Association of Metal Material Trade(CAMT), delivered a detailed interpretation of the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) cooperation plan, which the association has been formulating over years of deliberation. She expounded on eight core modules, including background and significance, strategic positioning, theme design, characteristic innovation, and expected outcomes.

Centered on the core theme of "coordinated development," the plan emphasizes the concepts of resource integration, joint standard formulation, and result sharing, which have garnered high recognition and positive responses from the participating representatives.

Representatives in attendance, including Wang Qihu (President, Anhui Metal Materials Circulation Association), Pan Jingtong (Vice President, Anhui Metal Materials Circulation Association; Chairman, Hefei Jingang Commerce & Trade Co., Ltd.), Zhou Jun (Secretary-General, Jiangsu Steel Service Industry Association), Hong Jianguo (President of the Taizhou Metal Materials Circulation Association), Wang Yang (Executive Vice President, Ningbo Iron and Steel Industry Association) and Zhang Haifeng (Secretary-General, Ningbo Iron and Steel Industry Association), Zhou Miaocui (President, Lishui Metals Industry Association), Wang Chongjun & Hu Chunfei (Executive Presidents, Jinhua Iron and Steel Industry Association), Guo Zhibing (Vice President, Jinhua Iron and Steel Industry Association), Su Deqiang (Party Secretary & Secretary-General, Anshan Steel Service Industry Association), and Sun Xudong (Assistant Secretary-General,CAMT; Secretary-General, Yangtze River Delta Steel Industry Coordinated Development Working Committee), conducted in-depth deliberations on industry-focused topics—including complementary industrial advantages, shared enterprise demands, joint talent cultivation, collaborative technological breakthroughs, and cross-regional cooperation mechanisms—grounded in the practical conditions of their respective regions.

The participating representatives reached a unanimous consensus that deepening collaboration in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) steel industry serves as a critical vehicle for implementing the national "Yangtze River Delta Integration" coordinated development strategy, and more importantly, a pivotal pathway to optimizing and upgrading the regional industrial and supply chains while enhancing overall competitiveness.

Focusing on specific directions including "establishing a normalized communication mechanism", "co-constructing a technology exchange platform", and "pooling regional collaborative forces", the representatives put forward targeted recommendations. They also expressed their commitment to actively engaging in the committee’s work initiatives, with the collective goal of advancing the YRD steel industry toward high-end, green, and collaborative development.

At the conclusion of the meeting, the following key work arrangements were explicitly finalized for the subsequent phase: first, to systematically collate and synthesize recommendations from all stakeholders; second, to expedite the refinement of the committee’s operational mechanism; and third, to advance the implementation of priority tasks including the materialization of industry forums, joint standard formulation, and enterprise matchmaking. These targeted initiatives are designed to inject new momentum into the coordinated development of the Yangtze River Delta (YRD) steel industry.