PREFACE

Over the long process of mankind's development, discovery of the secrets of bronze smelting, and the mastery of it, was a watershed event. The remarkable ancient Chinese civilization achieved by our renowned ancestors also owes its success to early mastery of the use of bronze.

Without wide utilization of this metal, little of mankind's progress and development could have been achieved in China - eventually culminating today in China's new era of rapid development. The need for copper materials has dramatically increased and China is now the world center of copper processing and consumption. To continue this rate of rapid development, China needs additional copper resources. As a result, the leaders of China's copper industry search for ways to cooperatively develop overseas copper resources. The current economic situation, both domestic and overseas, presents this opportunity. With a united effort and a resolve to succeed, together the members of the Chinese copper industry can achieve the goal of developing and obtaining new copper resources. By voluntarily forming a large and united new entity, China's influential copper giants can achieve the desired result and meet the need of the times. "CUC", as this new entity will be called, will bear the responsibility to insure the stable and sustainable development of the Chinese copper industry.