China: Facts and Figures - Facts and Figures

Official name

People’s Republic of China

Capital

Beijing

Area

9,571,300 sq km

3,695,500 sq mi

Administrative divisions (population)

Anhui

64,100,000 (2003 estimate)

Beijing

14,564,000 (2003 estimate)

Fujian

34,880,000 (2003 estimate)

Gansu

26,033,400 (2003 estimate)

Guangdong

79,542,200 (2003 estimate)

Guangxi Zhuang

48,570,000 (2003 estimate)

Guizhou

38,696,600 (2003 estimate)

Hainan

8,105,200 (2003 estimate)

Hebei

67,694,400 (2003 estimate)

Heilongjiang

38,150,000 (2003 estimate)

Henan

96,670,000 (2003 estimate)

Hong Kong S. A. R.

7,018,636 (2008 estimate)

Hubei

60,017,000 (2003 estimate)

Hunan

66,628,000 (2003 estimate)

Inner Mongolia

42,100,000 (2003 estimate)

Jiangsu

23,796,100 (2003 estimate)

Jiangxi

74,058,200 (2003 estimate)

Jilin

42,542,300 (2003 estimate)

Liaoning

27,037,000 (2003 estimate)

Macao S. A. R.

460,823 (2008)

Ningxia Hui

5,803,000 (2003 estimate)

Qinghai

5,338,000 (2003 estimate)

Shaanxi

36,895,000 (2003 estimate)

Shandong

91,250,000 (2003 estimate)

Shanghai

17,110,000 (2003 estimate)

Shanxi

33,142,900 (2003 estimate)

Sichuan

87,004,000 (2003 estimate)

Taiwan

22,920,946 (2008 estimate)

Tianjin

10,113,000 (2003 estimate)

Tibet

2,701,700 (2003 estimate)

Xinjiang Uygur

19,339,500 (2003 estimate)

Yunnan

43,756,000 (2003 estimate)

Zhejiang

46,795,500 (2003 estimate)

Largest cities (population)

Shanghai

13,680,800 (2006 estimate)

Beijing

11,807,000 (2005 estimate)

Tianjin

9,393,100 (2007 estimate)

Wuhan

7,811,900 (2003 estimate)

Chongqing

6,300,000 (2005)

Shenyang

6,800,000 (2002 estimate)

Guangzhou

7,607,220 (2006 estimate)

Chengdu

2,300,000 (2007 estimate)

Xi'an

6,940,000 (2007 estimate)

Changchun

7,240,000 (2004 estimate)

Harbin

4,642,400 (2006 estimate)

Nanjing

2,740,000 (2000 estimate)

Zibo

2,520,000 (2007 estimate)

Dalian

3,289,000 (2007 estimate)

T'aipei

2,632,242 (2006 estimate)

Jinan

5,974,000 (2005 estimate)

Taiyuan

3,413,800 (2004 estimate)

Qingdao

2,584,000 (2007 estimate)

Zhengzhou

2,209,000 (2005 estimate)

Hangzhou

3,931,900 (2003)

Changsha

5,720,000 (2004 estimate)

Kunming

2,150,000 (2007 estimate)

Fuzhou

1,619,400 (2004 estimate)

Tangshan

1,700,000 (2007 estimate)

Population

1,330,044,600 (2008 estimate)

Population growth rate

0.63 per cent (2008 estimate)

Population density

143 persons per sq km (2008 estimate)

369 persons per sq mi (2008 estimate)

Urbanization

Per cent urban

41 per cent (2005 estimate)

Per cent rural

59 per cent (2005 estimate)

Life expectancy

Total

73.2 years (2008 estimate)

Female

75.2 years (2008 estimate)

Male

71.4 years (2008 estimate)

Infant mortality rate

21 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008 estimate)

Literacy rate

Total

87.3 per cent (2005 estimate)

Female

80.6 per cent (2005 estimate)

Male

93.7 per cent (2005 estimate)

Ethnic divisions

Han Chinese

92 per cent

Zhuang, Mongolian, Tibetan, Uyghur, Miao, Yi, Korean, Yao, Bai, Tujia, Hani, and other nationalities

8 per cent

Languages

Mandarin Chinese (official). Official regional languages: Daur, Kalmyk-Oirat, Lu, Peripheral Mongolian, Central Tibetan, Uyghur, Xibe, Northern Zhuang. Chinese languages: Jinyu, Wu, Yue, Xiang, Hakka, Min Nan, Gan, Min Bei, Min Dong, Pu-Xian. Also: Southern Zhuang, Bouyei, Dong, Hmong, Yi, and many other indigenous languages.

Religions

Officially atheist, but traditionally eclectic. Also: Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Confucian, Muslim, Christian.

Type of government

Communist state

Independence

221 BC (unification under the Qin [Ch'in] Dynasty; Qing [Ch'ing] Dynasty replaced by the Republic on February 12, 1912; People's Republic established October 1, 1949)

Constitution

December 4, 1982, amended in 1993, 1999, and 2004

Voting rights

Universal at age 18

Gross domestic product (GDP) (US$)

2,644,681 million (2006)

GDP per capita (US$)

2,016.10 (2006)

GDP by economic sector

GDP, agriculture

11.7 per cent (2006)

GDP, industry

48.4 per cent (2006)

GDP, services

39.9 per cent (2006)

National budget (US$)

Total revenue

214,869 million (2004)

Total expenditure

182,897 million (2004)

Monetary unit

1 yuan, consisting of 10 jiao

Exports

Textiles, clothing, footwear, toys, machinery and equipment, weapon systems, mineral fuels, chemicals

Imports

Steel, motor vehicles, textile machinery, oil products, aircraft

Major trading partners for exports

United States, Japan, South Korea, Germany, Singapore, Netherlands, United Kingdom

Major trading partners for imports

Japan, United States, South Korea, Germany, Singapore

Industries

Iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, consumer durables, food processing, vehicle manufacturing, consumer electronics, telecommunications

Agriculture

Rice, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, pork; cotton, other fibres, oilseed; pigs, cattle, poultry

Natural resources

Coal, iron ore, petroleum, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminium, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower

Basic Facts and People sections

Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org).

Health and Education section

Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org).

Government section

Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data are from Military Balance.

Economy section

Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the latest Europa World Yearbook and various International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications.

Energy, Communication, and Transportation section

Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org).

Note

Figures may not total 100 per cent due to rounding.