2000 Edition

Background

For centuries China has stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. But in the first half of the 20th century, China was beset by major famines, civil unrest, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established a dictatorship 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 decentralized economic decision making. Output quadrupled in the next 20 years and China now has the world's second largest GDP. Political controls remain tight even while economic controls continue to weaken.

Area

land

9,326,410 sq km

total

9,596,960 sq km

water

270,550 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly smaller than the US

Climate

extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north

Coastline

14,500 km

Elevation extremes

highest point

Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)

lowest point

Turpan Pendi -154 m

Environment - current issues

air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal, produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species

Environment - international agreements

party to

Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban

Geographic coordinates

35 00 N, 105 00 E

Geography - note

world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US)

Irrigated land

498,720 sq km (1993 est.)

Land boundaries

border countries

Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, Hong Kong 30 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Macau 0.34 km, Mongolia 4,673 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km

total

22,143.34 km

Land use

arable land

10%

forests and woodland

14%

other

33% (1993 est.)

permanent crops

0%

permanent pastures

43%

Location

Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam

Map references

Asia

Maritime claims

contiguous zone

24 nm

continental shelf

200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

territorial sea

12 nm

Natural hazards

frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts

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)

Terrain

mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east

Age structure

0-14 years: 25% (male 168,040,006; female 152,826,953) 15-64 years: 68% (male 439,736,737; female 413,454,673) 65 years and over: 7% (male 41,200,297; female 46,573,816) (2000 est.)

Birth rate

16.12 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Death rate

6.73 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Ethnic groups

Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%

Infant mortality rate

28.92 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 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)

Life expectancy at birth

female

73.33 years (2000 est.)

male

69.6 years

total population

71.38 years

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over can read and write

female

72.7% (1995 est.)

male

89.9%

total population

81.5%

Nationality

adjective

Chinese

noun

Chinese (singular and plural)

Net migration rate

-0.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)

Population

1,261,832,482 (July 2000 est.)

Population growth rate

0.9% (2000 est.)

Religions

Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 2%-3%, Christian 1% (est.)

note

officially atheist

Sex ratio

at birth

1.15 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.88 male(s)/female

total population

1.06 male(s)/female (2000 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.82 children born/woman (2000 est.)

Administrative divisions

23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities** (shi, singular and plural); Anhui, Beijing**, Chongqing**, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi*, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol*, Ningxia*, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai**, Shanxi, Sichuan, Tianjin**, Xinjiang*, Xizang* (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang

note

China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau

Capital

Beijing

Constitution

most recent promulgation 4 December 1982

Country name

abbreviation

PRC

conventional long form

People's Republic of China

conventional short form

China

local long form

Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo

local short form

Zhong Guo

Data code

CH

Diplomatic representation from the US

chief of mission

Ambassador Joseph W. PRUEHER

embassy

Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing

mailing address

PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002

telephone

(10) 6532-3831

Diplomatic representation in the US

chancery

2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador LI Zhaoxing

consulate(s) general

Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco

telephone

(202) 328-2500

Executive branch

cabinet

State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC)

chief of state

President JIANG Zemin (since 27 March 1993) and Vice President HU Jintao (since 16 March 1998)

election results

JIANG Zemin reelected president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,882 votes (36 delegates voted against him, 29 abstained, and 32 did not vote); HU Jintao elected vice president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,841 votes (67 delegates voted against him, 39 abstained, and 32 did not vote)

elections

president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 16-18 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress

head of government

Premier ZHU Rongji (since 18 March 1998); Vice Premiers QIAN Qichen (since 29 March 1993), LI Lanqing (29 March 1993), WU Bangguo (since 17 March 1995), and WEN Jiabao (since 18 March 1998)

FAX

(10) 6532-6422

consulate(s) general

Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang

Flag description

red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner

Government type

Communist state

Independence

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

International organization participation

AfDB, APEC, AsDB, BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, NAM (observer), OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant), ZC

Judicial branch

Supreme People's Court, judges appointed by the National People's Congress

Legal system

a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law

Legislative branch

unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,979 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms)

election results

percent of vote - NA; seats - NA

elections

last held NA December 1997-NA February 1998 (next to be held late 2002-NA March 2003)

National holiday

National Day, 1 October (1949)

Political parties and leaders

Chinese Communist Party or CCP [JIANG Zemin, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP

Political pressure groups and leaders

no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong sect and the China Democracy Party as potential rivals

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Agriculture - products

rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish

Budget

expenditures

$NA, including capital expenditures of $NA

revenues

$NA

Currency

1 yuan = 10 jiao

Debt - external

$159 billion (1998 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$NA

Economy - overview

Beginning in late 1978 the Chinese leadership has been moving the economy from a sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented economy but still within a rigid political framework of Communist Party control. To this end the authorities have switched to a system of household responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprise in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. In 1999, with its 1.25 billion people but a GDP of just $3,800 per capita, China became the second largest economy in the world after the US. Agricultural output doubled in the 1980s, and industry also posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. On the darker side, the leadership has often experienced in its hybrid system the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy, lassitude, corruption) and of capitalism (windfall gains and stepped-up inflation). Beijing thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. In late 1993 China's leadership approved additional long-term reforms aimed at giving still more play to market-oriented institutions and at strengthening the center's control over the financial system; state enterprises would continue to dominate many key industries in what was now termed "a socialist market economy". In 1995-99 inflation dropped sharply, reflecting tighter monetary policies and stronger measures to control food prices. At the same time, the government struggled to (a) collect revenues due from provinces, businesses, and individuals; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises, most of which had not participated in the vigorous expansion of the economy and many of which had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 50 to 100 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to continued rapid economic growth is the deterioration in the environment, notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. The next few years will witness increasing tensions between a highly centralized political system and an increasingly decentralized economic system.

Electricity - consumption

1.014 trillion kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports

7.935 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports

89 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - production

1.16 trillion kWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source

fossil fuel

80.31%

hydro

18.46%

nuclear

1.23%

other

0% (1998)

Exchange rates

yuan per US$1 - 8.2793 (January 2000), 8.2783 (1999), 8.2790 (1998), 8.2898 (1997), 8.3142 (1996), 8.3514 (1995)

note

beginning 1 January 1994, the People's Bank of China quotes the midpoint rate against the US dollar based on the previous day's prevailing rate in the interbank foreign exchange market

Exports

$194.9 billion (f.o.b., 1999)

Exports - commodities

machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels, chemicals

Exports - partners

US 22%, Hong Kong 19%, Japan 17%, Germany, South Korea, Netherlands, UK, Singapore, Taiwan (1999)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $4.8 trillion (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture

15%

industry

35%

services

50% (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $3,800 (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

7% (1999 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: 2.2% highest 10%: 30.9% (1995)

Imports

$165.8 billion (c.i.f., 1999)

Imports - commodities

machinery and equipment, plastics, chemicals, iron and steel, mineral fuels

Imports - partners

Japan 20%, US 12%, Taiwan 12%, South Korea 10%, Germany, Hong Kong, Russia, Singapore (1999)

Industrial production growth rate

8.8% (1999 est.)

Industries

iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

-1.3% (1999 est.)

Labor force

700 million (1998 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture 50%, industry 24%, services 26% (1998)

Population below poverty line

10% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate

urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (1999 est.)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

3 (1999)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998)

Radios

417 million (1997)

Telephone system

domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns

domestic

interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place

international

satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany

Telephones - main lines in use

110 million (1999 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

23.4 million (1998)

Television broadcast stations

3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997)

Televisions

400 million (1997)

Airports

206 (1996 est.)

Airports - with paved runways

total

192 over 3,047 m: 18 2,438 to 3,047 m: 65 1,524 to 2,437 m: 90 914 to 1,523 m: 13 under 914 m: 6 (1996 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways

total

14 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 1 (1996 est.)

Highways

paved

271,300 km (with at least 24,474 km of expressways)

total

1.21 million km

unpaved

938,700 km (1998 est.)

Merchant marine

ships by type

barge carrier 2, bulk 325, cargo 840, chemical tanker 21, combination bulk 11, combination ore/oil 1, container 125, liquified gas 20, multi-functional large load carrier 5, passenger 8, passenger/cargo 46, petroleum tanker 251, refrigerated cargo 24, roll-on/roll-off 21, short-sea passenger 43, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 1 (1999 est.)

total

1,746 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,637,023 GRT/24,552,567 DWT

Pipelines

crude oil 9,070 km; petroleum products 560 km; natural gas 9,383 km (1998)

Ports and harbors

Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Tianjin, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang

Railways

narrow gauge

3,600 km 0.750-m gauge local industrial lines (1998 est.)

note

a new total of 68,000 km has been estimated for early 1999

standard gauge

62,050 km 1.435-m gauge (12,150 km electrified; 20,250 km double track)

total

65,650 km (including 5,400 km of provincial "local" rails)

Waterways

110,000 km navigable (1999)

Military branches

People's Liberation Army (PLA), which includes the Ground Forces, Navy (includes Marines and Naval Aviation), Air Force, Second Artillery Corps (the strategic missile force), People's Armed Police (internal security troops, nominally subordinate to Ministry of Public Security, but included by the Chinese as part of the "armed forces" and considered to be an adjunct to the PLA in wartime)

Military expenditures - dollar figure

$12.608 billion (FY99); note - Western analysts believe that China's real defense spending is several times higher than the official figure because a number of significant items are funded elsewhere

Military expenditures - percent of GDP

1.2% (FY99)

Military manpower - availability

males age 15-49: 363,050,980 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service

males age 15-49: 199,178,361 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - military age

18 years of age

Military manpower - reaching military age annually

males

10,839,039 (2000 est.)

Disputes - international

boundary with India in dispute; dispute over at least two small sections of the boundary with Russia remain to be settled, despite 1997 boundary agreement; portions of the boundary with Tajikistan are indefinite; 33-km section of boundary with North Korea in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary dispute with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does Taiwan; agreement on land border with Vietnam was signed in December 1999, but details of alignment have not yet been made public

Illicit drugs

major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem

CHRISTMAS ISLAND