Historically, China's energy consumption structure has been characterized by "abundant coal, scarce oil, and limited natural gas." In 2017, coal accounted for 61% of China's energy consumption, oil for 19%, and natural gas for 7%. During the same period, coal constituted 28% and natural gas 23% of the global energy consumption mix. This comparison reveals China's significant reliance on coal resources. The excessive exploitation of coal has led to environmental degradation and pollution, a developmental approach termed "extensive development.". In the pursuit of high-quality development, China has implemented the coal-to-gas policy, mandating the replacement of high-energy- consuming and highly polluting coal-fired boilers with gas-fired ones in certain regions. This policy has significantly accelerated the development of natural gas in China. The demand for natural gas in China increased from 80 billion cubic meters in 2008 to 235.2 billion cubic meters in 2017, with an average annual compound growth rate of 12.5%.

Within the natural gas consumption structure, natural gas has become a crucial energy source for industrial manufacturing. This provides a key metric for analyzing the long-term stock price trends of publicly listed manufacturing companies. The growth rate of natural gas usage is positively correlated with the expansion and contraction cycles of manufacturing enterprises' production capacities. Thus, purchasing company stocks at the point when the growth rate of natural gas usage bottoms out and begins to rebound can lead to excess returns during the new expansion cycle of the enterprise's production capacity.