Introduction

Hubei Province’s monitoring of mineral product prices has been ongoing since... 2013 Year 10 Launched on a monthly basis and promoted under the unified organization of the Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Land, this initiative strengthens horizontal cooperation with provincial-level departments and, vertically, relies on county (and city) bureaus of natural resources and land as diversified support platforms, thereby achieving unified provincial planning, coordinated arrangements, and synchronized monitoring. Originating from the reform of online collection and management of mineral resource compensation fees, this initiative serves the needs of transparent collection of mineral resource compensation fees and quality oversight of mining rights assessment reports. With the rise of big data technology, it has gradually evolved into a mechanism for promoting the efficient utilization of mineral resources. “ Three Capitals ” Management, Conservation, and Comprehensive Utilization of Mineral Resources “ Internet +” Forms of management innovation. Future reform visions: (1) Attach great importance to the construction of a mineral resource management system, strengthen top-level design, and support the development of the National Big Data Information Center. (2) Strengthen interaction and communication among provincial-level land and resource management departments, and actively promote mineral products. “ Dual control of quantity and price ” Monitoring; (3) Accelerate the promotion of smart management for land and resources.

Information cited in this article: Wang Lei , Yu Jun et al. .  Exploration and Reflection on Price Monitoring of Mineral Products in Hubei Province   [J]. China's Land and Resources Economics ,2016 ( 12 ) 19-22.

Currently, mineral resource management has entered a phase of deepened reform. Although the revision of the Mineral Resources Law has been postponed, several reform measures have already been implemented, including reducing the mineral resource compensation fee rate to zero, abolishing the filing requirement for mining rights assessments, shifting from annual inspections of mining rights to a public disclosure system, and planning to eliminate the payment for mining rights. As traditional tools for mineral resource management gradually lose their effectiveness, land and resources authorities at all levels must strengthen innovation, take the initiative in strategic planning, and actively explore new approaches. They should proactively provide both theoretical preparation and practical support for refining the top-level design of land and resource management.

1 The Origin and Development of Mineral Product Price Monitoring in Hubei Province

1.1 The Origin of Price Monitoring for Mineral Products in Hubei Province

The monitoring of mineral product prices in Hubei Province originated from the reform of online collection and management of mineral resource compensation fees. It serves the needs of transparent collection of these fees and quality supervision of mining rights assessment reports. With the rise of big data technology, this monitoring system has gradually evolved to promote the efficient utilization of mineral resources. “ Three Capitals ” Management, Conservation, and Comprehensive Utilization of Mineral Resources “ Internet +” Management innovation approaches.

2013 Year, the Hubei Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment developed and launched. “ Online Collection and Management System for Mineral Resource Compensation Fees ” , the whole province has 103 The authority responsible for collecting the compensation fee for mineral resources and 2800 The mining enterprise Yu Ji Na Fei has been brought under information-based management, and the collection of mineral resource compensation fees now involves online filing, online review, and bank deduction directly transferred to the state treasury. This reform initiative has increased... “ Local collection ” Under this model, to enhance the transparency of tax collection and administration, mining enterprises and tax collection authorities at all levels call for the Hubei Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Environment to strengthen monitoring of mineral product prices, starting from improving the accuracy, fairness, and standardization of calculation and collection. At the same time, it is urgently necessary to reinforce quality oversight of mining rights appraisal reports. Consequently, price monitoring has become indispensable. Relying on... “ Online Collection and Management System for Mineral Resource Compensation Fees ” In accordance with the "Regulations on the Collection and Administration of Compensation for Mineral Resources" (State Council Order No. [number]), the Hubei Provincial Department of Land and Resources is conducting its operations. 150 Article 9: “ When paying the mineral resource compensation fee, the mining right holder shall simultaneously submit information including the types of mined minerals, production volumes, sales quantities, sales prices, and actual recovery rates. ” The regulation, by standardizing the collection and management of mineral resource compensation fees, has enabled the gathering of data on mineral product sales contracts, sales volumes, and sales invoices from fee-paying enterprises across the province. Moreover, big data and cloud computing technologies provide the necessary technical support for classifying mineral product specifications and conducting statistical analysis of prices.

1.2 The Development of Mineral Product Price Monitoring

Monitoring of mineral product prices has standardized the collection of fees for compensation for mineral resources, improved the quality of mining rights appraisal reports, and safeguarded state-owned property rights as well as fair competition among enterprises. The price information released is increasingly being recognized and valued by fiscal, price control, audit, tax, and judicial authorities, and is being applied in areas such as fiscal and tax revenue forecasting, tax collection, and valuation of economic cases involving minerals. Moreover, it is being increasingly utilized by enterprises in commercial negotiations. As... 2016 Year 7 Moon 1 The rate for the daily resource compensation fee has been adjusted to zero. On the one hand, the Hubei Provincial Department of Natural Resources and国土资源 has promptly secured support from the Hubei Provincial People’s Government, the provincial finance department, and the tax authorities, and has begun exploring the establishment of a joint resource tax collection and information-sharing mechanism, thereby broadening data-collection channels and enhancing the scope of application for mineral-price monitoring. On the other hand, the focus of monitoring work has been promptly shifted from merely tracking the specifications and prices of mineral products to integrating it with dynamic supervision of mineral resource reserves, thus laying a solid foundation. “ Dual control of quantity and price ” The monitoring approach and technical roadmap provide new impetus for the innovative development of land and resource management.

(1) Serving the reform of integrated management of mineral resources, assets, and capital. China’s management of mineral resources has long been plagued by issues such as a narrow management perspective, slow transformation of the mining economy, weak development of resource property rights, and an absence of a robust mining capital market. Mineral resources, Integrated Management of Assets and Capital “ Three Capitals ” Management) The new mechanism is key to addressing related challenges and advancing resource management reform, and it will help enhance the competitiveness of China’s mining market. , Promoting the sustainable development of the mining industry holds significant practical importance. In “ Three Capitals ” Under the new management mechanism, the conversion and calculation of resources into capital are inseparable from the monitoring and theoretical research of mineral commodity prices. Moreover, authoritative, accurate, continuous, comprehensive, and timely monitoring of mineral commodity prices will provide crucial support for mineral resource management. “ Three Capitals ” Management system reform provides a driving force.

(2) Serving the reform of resource balance sheet management. The Decision adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee proposed that, “ Explore the development of natural resource balance sheets and implement off-duty audits of natural resource assets for leading cadres. Establish a lifelong accountability system for ecological and environmental damage. ” The natural resource balance sheet not only serves the ecological and environmental accountability audits of leading cadres, but more importantly, through the information provided by the natural resource balance sheet... “ Resource Inventory Account ” With “ Ecological and Environmental Account ” will better serve the reform of China’s ecological civilization management system for natural resources. The difficulty in preparing a balance sheet for mineral resources lies in... “ Shadow price “” Cost method “” Market approach “” Income Loss Valuation Method “” Maintenance Cost-Based Valuation Method “” Public Opinion Polling Method ” Existing theories and methodologies for valuing resource assets are mostly applicable to medium- and long-term pricing frameworks and methodologies for commodity resources, whereas research on valuation techniques for non-commodity resources is still in its early stages. Relying on... “ Internet +” Combined with big data technologies, we can promptly and comprehensively monitor mineral product prices in both time and space. By leveraging new information technology tools, we can help people grasp current prices, historical prices, and price fluctuation trends of mineral products—thus undoubtedly providing a novel approach to addressing the challenges in compiling and accounting for resource balance sheets.

(3) Serving the conservation and comprehensive utilization of mineral resources, prices act as a barometer and weathervane for both the development of the mining industry and the construction of mining markets, enabling them to exert a two-way regulatory role on the mining economy. Static prices can reflect important economic fundamentals such as the intrinsic value of mineral resources within a specific time and space framework, whereas dynamic price fluctuations carry even greater significance. They reveal the rationality of resource allocation, the efficiency of resource exploitation, the adaptability of industrial structures, and the cyclical patterns of mining activities. In the context of ecological civilization building, the conservation and comprehensive utilization of mineral resources require, on the one hand, sustained efforts to enhance the level of exploration and development, and on the other hand, a commitment to moving toward... “ Three Rates ” Improving indicators should focus on enhancing efficiency and tapping into the potential of resource revitalization. On the other hand, it’s crucial to genuinely leverage the market’s decisive role in resource allocation. By strengthening the disclosure of domestic and international mineral prices and supply-demand information, as well as improving price forecasting, we can reduce blind investments in resource development and prevent speculative activities. “ Hot money ” The influx of capital into the mineral resources industry is impacting the stable development of the mining sector, helping to reduce inefficient resource exploitation and waste, and ensuring that the mining industry develops in a rational, healthy, and sustainable manner. In a sense, guiding mining enterprises to develop a strong market awareness is more advantageous and sustainable than traditional regulatory controls and restrictions. The timely release of information on mineral product specifications, varieties, and prices also provides authoritative and reliable investment guidance for mining enterprises, supporting the construction of product chains and industrial chains, and optimizing industrial structures. Moreover, this approach helps to unlock bottlenecks in the international mineral products market. “ Whatever China buys, prices go up; whatever China sells, prices go down. ” The dilemma, enhancing China's voice and influence.

(4) Serving the construction of the National Big Data Information Center. The State Council’s “On Actively Promoting” “ Internet +” The Guidance on Action states that, “ Internet +” It involves deeply integrating the innovative achievements of the internet with various sectors of the economy and society, thereby driving technological advancement, enhancing efficiency, and promoting organizational transformation. This will boost the innovation capacity and productivity of the real economy, giving rise to a new model of economic and social development characterized by the internet as both a fundamental infrastructure and a key innovation driver. During the 36th collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Comrade Xi Jinping pointed out that, with the development of the internet—especially mobile internet—social governance models are shifting from unidirectional management to two-way interaction, from offline to integrated online-and-offline approaches, and from purely government-led regulation toward greater emphasis on collaborative social governance. We must gain a profound understanding of the internet’s role in national governance and social governance, using initiatives such as promoting e-government and building new smart cities as leverage, and leveraging data centralization and sharing as a pathway to establish a nationwide, integrated national big data center. We should advance the integration of technologies, business processes, and data, thus achieving coordinated management and service delivery across levels, regions, systems, departments, and business domains. We must strengthen internet-based thinking, harnessing the internet’s advantages of flatness, interactivity, and speed to promote scientific decision-making in government, precise social governance, and efficient public services. By employing information technology, we can better perceive social trends, facilitate smooth communication channels, and provide effective support for policymaking and governance. The joint effort by provincial land and resources authorities and tax departments to monitor mineral product prices is undoubtedly a concrete measure to implement General Secretary Xi’s vision of building a big data information center.

2 Practical Exploration of Price Monitoring for Mineral Products in Hubei Province

2.1 Selection Principles and Visionary Goals for Monitored Subjects

Select mining types for monitoring starting from the easier ones and gradually moving to the more challenging, while fully taking into account the importance and representativeness of the monitored mineral resources. Priority should be given to minerals such as phosphate ore, iron ore, salt mines, and stone materials—minerals that have high exploration, development, and utilization levels, large industrial scales, relatively complete industrial and product chains, large numbers of workers, and abundant and transparent information—as monitoring targets. These mineral resources occupy a relatively important position in Hubei Province’s economic operations and administrative management, making significant contributions to the province’s overall economic and social development. The vision and goal of this monitoring effort is to achieve provincial-level monitoring as soon as possible. “ Full regional coverage “” Full coverage of mineral types “” Full coverage of trading hours “” Full coverage of trading activities ” (Abbreviated as “ Four full coverage areas ” ).

2.2 Main Contents and Deepening Directions of Monitoring Work

At the outset of the monitoring effort, the primary focus was on monitoring mineral product sales prices, sales specifications, sales channels, and sales volumes. As the foundation of the work became more solid, we promptly integrated the monitoring activities with dynamic reserves oversight, paying close attention to the relationship between reserve depletion and the profitability of mineral product production. We monitor both... “ At the time, in the place, for the period ” The specifications, types, sales channels, and selling prices of mineral products are monitored, along with dynamic monitoring data on mine reserves. This allows us to gain insights into the quantitative relationships among mineral product transaction volumes, mineral production, resource extraction, and utilized reserves. Furthermore, we are strengthening monitoring of the utilization of low- and medium-grade ores as well as co-associated minerals, continuously enhancing the precision of dynamic reserve management. By analyzing mineral product types—such as raw ore, concentrate, and deeply processed products—we can assess the level of mining industry development and the potential for value-added growth. We also evaluate the economic benefits associated with unit reserve consumption for key mineral species and measure the effectiveness of transforming resource advantages into economic advantages.

2.3 Design Philosophy and Technical Approach for Monitoring Work

“ Internet +” The rapid advancement of technology has created an opportunity to upgrade mining market monitoring and mineral resource management practices. The technological core of mineral product price monitoring lies in the application of big data and cloud computing. On one hand, it involves collecting big data on mineral product transaction certificates from the market, thereby fully stimulating the enthusiasm of mining enterprises to participate and leveraging their potential. 1 To N” and N To 1” the superposition effect, meaning each 1 Mining enterprises that upload product specifications and price information to the mineral product price monitoring platform can enjoy cloud computing services. N Equivalent information for mining enterprises, enabling “ I for everyone, everyone for me. ” a virtuous cycle of mutual reinforcement. On the other hand, by accelerating the sharing of data among administrative authorities, we can achieve interconnection, data sharing, and cross-validation among departments such as land resources, state taxation, local taxation, price regulation, statistics, and the judicial system. This will break down information silos across various departments, connect previously isolated data systems, and enhance the authority, accuracy, integrity, and efficiency of administrative services. In practice, the land and resources administration department provides reserve monitoring data and information on the conservation and comprehensive utilization of mineral resources to the tax authorities as reference material for levying value-added tax, resource tax, and granting tax exemptions or reductions. Meanwhile, the tax authorities feed back data on mineral product sales prices and volumes from their tax-control big data platform to the land and resources administration department, enabling it to monitor and analyze mineral product specifications and pricing trends, promptly identify changes in mining market conditions and cyclical patterns, and provide first-hand data to support the land and resources administration’s decision-making on resource allocation, implementation of smart mining management, and guidance toward the rational and healthy development of the mining industry.

2.4 Organizational Leadership and Conditional Guarantees for Monitoring Work

The monitoring of mineral product prices is being promoted under the unified organization of the Hubei Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Geological Environment. Horizontally, cooperation with provincial-level departments is being strengthened; vertically, county (city)-level bureaus of natural resources and geological environment serve as diversified support bases. The focus is on technical support, enabling unified planning, coordinated arrangements, and synchronized monitoring across the entire province. First, the Hubei Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Geological Environment is responsible for designing the technical approach, supervising and guiding the implementation of the work, coordinating among relevant provincial departments, promptly releasing price information, providing policy consultations and answers, and ensuring the preparation and approval of special budget allocations for mineral product price monitoring. Second, the technical support units are responsible for data collection, statistical analysis, research, drafting monthly reports, and operating and maintaining the mineral product price monitoring information system. Third, the natural resources and geological environment management departments in each monitored county (city) are tasked with publicizing, mobilizing, organizing, and assisting mineral product sales enterprises to submit relevant information promptly and accurately, as well as coordinating with local relevant departments.

Opinions of the People's Government of Hubei Province on Strengthening the Management of Mineral Resource Exploration, Development, and Utilization (Ezhengfa [ 2015 ] 60 No.), “Implementation Opinions of the People’s Government of Hubei Province on Establishing a Model Province for Economical and Intensive Use of Land and Resources” (Ezhengfa [ 2016 ] 57 No.) and the “Notice of the General Office of the People’s Government of Hubei Province on Seriously Implementing the Responsibilities for the Exploration, Development, and Management of Mineral Resources” (E Zheng Ban Dian [ 2016 ] 5 No. ) puts forward clear requirements for advancing monitoring efforts, providing a robust policy basis and guarantee for the implementation of this work. Over the past three years, Hubei Province has allocated special funds through transfer payments to support the monitoring of mineral product prices. 1654 Ten thousand yuan ( 2014 Year 320 Ten thousand yuan, 2015 Year 710 Ten thousand yuan, 2016 Year 624 (Ten thousand yuan). Each monitored county allocates funds exclusively for their designated purposes, and in light of local conditions, they adopt a unified technical approach and a single technical support unit as required by the Provincial Department of Natural Resources and Planning. This has led to a coordinated approach characterized by a single working strategy, a unified technical roadmap, a single information platform, and a dedicated team of professional technicians, yielding highly satisfactory results.

2.5 Monitoring work effectiveness and data accumulation

Hubei Province’s monitoring of mineral product prices has been ongoing since... 2013 Year 10 Month of launch, as of 2014 Year 10 Monthly, issue provincial price monitoring reports on a monthly basis. 12 Period, release price information 1499 Article, involving 12 A single mineral type, with the coverage rate of mineral types accounting for those that are scaled up and developed in Hubei Province. 12.3% , collect the contract 528 copy, invoice 1872 Zhang, transaction coverage rate approximately 37% As of 2015 Year 10 Monthly, a provincial-level price monitoring monthly report is released. 24 Monthly Briefing for Pilot Counties 225 Periodic and Quality Supervision Report 225 Period. Release price information. 8851 Article, mineral species released 13 One, the coverage rate of mineral types has been increased to 13.4% Collect the contract 2019 copy, invoice 6279 Zhang, the transaction coverage rate has been increased to 64% , the monitoring area coverage accounts for Hubei Province. 26.4% As of 2016 Year 10 Monthly, a provincial-level price monitoring monthly report is released. 35 Monthly Briefing for Pilot Counties 692 Periodic and Quality Supervision Report 797 Period; release price information 19491 Article; Release of mineral types 17 One, the coverage rate of mineral types accounts for Hubei Province. 17.5% Collect the contract 4506 copy, invoice 13379 Zhang, the transaction coverage rate reaches 92% , regional coverage has been increased to 62.7% (See Table 1 As shown above, the content, scope, and volume of information released by monitoring have been increasing year by year, while monitoring methods and monitoring quality have also improved significantly.