China has led the world in nonferrous metals output for fiveyears in a row，said sources with the China NonferrousMetals Industry Associon(CNMIA)．

The country's output of ten main nonferrous metals，includingcopper，aluminum，nickel，lead，zinc and magnesium，surged 17.48%year-on-year to 19.17 million tons in 2006．

The country produced three million tons of copper，9.35 milliontons of electrolytic aluminum，2.74 million tons of lead and 3.15million tons of zinc．

Output of nine nonferrousmetals-excluding nickel-toppedthe world．

Profits of the country's mainnonferrous metals companiessoared 99.5% to RMB 110 billion(US$14.1 billion)last year．

In 2007．the country'snonferrous metalsoutput will increaserapidly，with pricesremaining at ahigh level due to risingdemand，said Kang Yi，theCNMIA chairman．