China's production of copper, electrolytic aluminum and other major non-ferrous metals rose sharply in the first half of 2006, the China Non-Ferrous Metals Industry Association said here Thursday.

According to figures released by the association, China produced 1.46 million tons of copper in the first six months of the year, up 21.7 percent year-on-year.

The production of electrolytic aluminum increased by 15.47 percent to reach 4.27 million tons.

The country also produced 1.3 million tons of lead and 1.48 million tons of zinc, up 21.78 percent and 15.26 percent, respectively.

In all, the production of 10 major non-ferrous metals stood at 8.94 million tons, up 16.77 percent over the same period of 2005.

Prices for copper and other major non-ferrous metals in the international market have been on a steady rise over recent years.

Thanks to increased production and higher prices, China's major non-ferrous metals enterprises saw their sales soar by 58.67 percent in the first half of the year to 586.36 billion yuan (73.30 billion U.S. dollars), the association said.

Their profits also jumped by 89.78 percent to reach 70.67 billion yuan (8.83 billion dollars).

Source: Xinhua