| Geographical Information |
| Map Location |
Asia |
| Geographical Location |
35° 00' North Latitude
105° 00' East Longitude |
| Surface Area |
9,596,960 sq km |
| Climate |
Extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north |
| Natural Resources |
Coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest) |
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| Political Information |
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| Country Name |
People's Republic of China |
| Capital City |
Beijing |
| Government Type |
Communist state |
| Administrative Divisions |
23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities (shi, singular and plural)
Provinces: Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Qinghai,
Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang
Autonomous regions: Guangxi, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Xinjiang, Xizang (Tibet)
Municipalities: Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin
Note: China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau |
| Independence Day |
221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty); 1 January 1912 (Manchu Dynasty replaced by a Republic); 1 October 1949 (People's Republic established) |
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| Demographical Information |
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| Population |
1,306,313,812 (July 2005 est.) |
| Nationality |
Chinese |
| Ethnic Groups |
Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1% |
| Religion |
Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 1%-2%, Christian 3%-4%
note: officially atheist (2002 est.) |
| Languages |
Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese),
Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry) |
| Population Growth Rate |
0.58% (2005 est.) |
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| Economical Information |
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| Currency |
Yuan (CNY)
note: also referred to as the Renminbi (RMB) |
| Industries |
Mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other metals; coal; machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals;
fertilizers; consumer products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, rail cars and
locomotives, ships, and aircraft; telecommunications equipment, commercial space launch vehicles and satellites |
| Labor Force |
760.8 million (2003) |
| Labor Force by Sectors |
Agriculture 49%, industry 22%, services 29% (2003 est.) |
| Agriculture Products |
Rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, apples, cotton, oilseed, pork, fish |
| Export Commodities |
Machinery and equipment, plastics, optical and medical equipment, iron and steel |
| Export Partners |
US 22.8%, Hong Kong 16.2%, Japan 12.4%, South Korea 4.4%, Germany 4% (2004) |
| Import Commodities |
Machinery and equipment, oil and mineral fuels, plastics, optical and medical equipment, organic chemicals, iron and steel |
| Import Partners |
Japan 16.1%, Taiwan 10.9%, South Korea 10.4%, US 7.7%, Hong Kong 7.4%, Germany 5.4% (2004) |
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| Transportation |
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| Railways |
71,898 km |
| Highways |
1,765,222 km |
| Pipelines |
Gas 15,890 km; oil 14,478 km; refined products 3,280 km (2004) |
| Airports |
472 (2004 est.) |
| Ports and Harbors |
Dalian, Guangzhou, Nanjing, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai |
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| Communication |
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| Phone Code |
+86 |
| Internet Abbreviation |
.cn |
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| Other |
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| Short History |
For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries,
the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an
autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people.
After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population,
living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight. |
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