Pledge, seen as potential “game changer” for African elephants, comes as country faces pressure to curb the trade.

China will ban all domestic ivory trade and processing by the end of 2017, a move described by activists as a potential “game changer” for African elephants.

African ivory is highly sought after in China, where it is seen as a status symbol, and prices can reach as high as $1,100 a kg.

“China will gradually stop the processing and sales of ivories for commercial purposes by the end of 2017,” the official Xinhua news agency said on Friday, citing a government statement.

The announcement follows China’s move in March this year to widen a ban on imports of all ivory and ivory products acquired before 1975 after pressure to restrict a trade that sees thousands of elephants slaughtered every year.

Xinhua said the complete ban would affect “34 processing enterprises and 143 designated trading venues, with dozens to be closed by the end of March 2017”.

“This is great news that will shut down the world’s largest market for elephant ivory,” Aili Kang, executive director of the Wildlife Conservation Society in Asia, said in a statement.

“I am very proud of my country for showing this leadership that will help ensure that elephants have a fighting chance to beat extinction. This is a game changer for Africa’s elephants.”

Conservationists estimate that more than 20,000 elephants were killed for their ivory last year, with similar tolls in previous years.

The WWF campaign group says 415,000 of the animals remain.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which took effect in 1975, banned ivory trade in 1989.

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Like other countries, China permits the resale of ivory bought before the ban, and also has a stockpile purchased with CITES approval in 2008, which it releases for sale with certification.

WWF also praised China’s move to a complete ban but called on the Chinese territory of Hong Kong to bring forward a plan to end its ivory trade by 2021.

“With China’s market closed, Hong Kong can become a preferred market for traffickers to launder illegal ivory under cover of the legal ivory trade,” said Cheryl Lo, senior wildlife crime officer at WWF.