China

People's Republic of ChinaZhonghua Renmin Gongheguo

Communist state

China as the 1993 edition of the CIA World Factbook published it: 82 fields, one of 36 editions from 1990 to 2025.

field in that editiontext changed from the edition beforenot in that editionthe open editionEach field below ends in its editions, 1990 to 2025. Point at a year above to follow it down.

CapitalBeijing

Area9,596,960 km2

LocationEast Asia, between India and Mongolia

Populationas each edition published it

1.18 billion July 1993 est. · 1.12bn in 1990

Population growth% a year

1.1% 1993 est. · -0.08% in 2025

Median ageyears

Not in this edition 31.5 yrs in 2003

Life expectancyyears at birth

67.74 years 1993 est. · 78.7 yrs in 2025

Fertility ratechildren per woman

1.85 children per woman 1993 est. · 2.3 in 1990

Infant mortalitydeaths per 1,000 live births

52.1 deaths per 1,000 live births 1993 est. · 34 in 1990

GDP per capitaeach edition's own dollars

Not in this edition $2,200 in 1994

GDP real growth% a year

12.8% 1992 est. · 5% in 2025

Geography

East Asia, between India and Mongolia

14 fields

Land useshare of 9,596,960 km2

arable land 10%permanent crops 0%meadows and pastures 31%forest and woodland 14%other 45%irrigated 478,220 km2 (1991 - Chinese statistic)

Area

9,596,960km2

land area: 9,326,410 km2comparative area: slightly larger than the US

Coastline

14,500km

continental shelf: claim to shallow areas of East China Sea and Yellow Seaterritorial sea: 12 nm

Map references

Asia, Southeast Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World

total 22,143.34 km, 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

International disputes

boundary with India;
bilateral negotiations are under way to resolve disputed sections of the boundary with Russia;
boundary with Tajikistan under dispute;
a short section of the boundary with North Korea 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, as does Taiwan, (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai)

Climate

extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north

Terrain

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

Natural resources

coal, iron ore, petroleum, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, world's largest hydropower potential

Environment

frequent typhoons (about five times per year along southern and eastern coasts), damaging floods, tsunamis, earthquakes;
deforestation;
soil erosion;
industrial pollution;
water pollution;
air pollution;
desertification

Note

world's third-largest country (after Russia and Canada)

People

14 fields

Population

1,177,584,537

(July 1993 est.)growth rate: 1.1% (1993 est.)

Per 1,000 population(1993 est.)

Birth

18.29Death

7.34Net migration

Male · female(1993 est.)

TotalMale · femaleLife expectancy years67.74

66.78 · 68.8

TotalMale · femaleLiteracy73%

84% · 62%

MaleFemaleLiteracy age 15 and over can read and write (1990)

Labor force

567.4million

by occupation: agriculture and forestry 60%, industry and commerce 25%, construction and mining 5%, social services 5%, other 5% (1990 est.)

Infant mortality rate

52.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.85 children born/woman (1993 est.)

Nationality

noun:: Chinese (singular and plural)
adjective:: Chinese

Ethnic divisions

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

Religions

Daoism (Taoism), Buddhism, Muslim 2-3%, Christian 1% (est.) note: officially atheist, but traditionally pragmatic and eclectic

Languages

Standard Chinese (Putonghua) or Mandarin (based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic divisions entry)

Government

Communist state

23 fields

Names

conventional long form:: People's Republic of China
conventional short form:: China
local long form:: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo
local short form:: Zhong Guo

Abbreviation

PRC

Digraph

Type

Communist state

Capital

Beijing

Administrative divisions

23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu,, singular and Nei Mongol*, Ningxia*, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai Shi**, Shanxi,, Sichuan, Tianjin

Shi**, Xinjiang, Xizang (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang, note

China considers Taiwan its 23rd province

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)

Constitution

most recent promulgated 4 December 1982

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

National holiday

National Day, 1 October (1949)

Political parties and leaders

Chinese Communist Party (CCP), JIANG Zemin, general secretary of the Central Committee (since 24 June 1989); eight registered small parties controlled by CCP

Other political or pressure groups

such meaningful opposition as exists consists of loose coalitions, usually within the party and government organization, that vary by issue

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Elections

National People's Congress:: last held March 1993 (next to be held March 1998);
results - CCP is the only party but there are also independents;
seats - (2,977 total) (elected at county or xian level)
President:: last held 27 March 1993 (next to be held NA 1998); results - JIANG Zemin was nominally elected by the Eighth National People's Congress

Executive branch

president, vice president, premier, four vice premiers, State Council

Legislative branch

unicameral National People's Congress (Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui)

Judicial branch

Supreme People's Court

Leaders

Chief of State:: President JIANG Zemin (since 27 March 1993); Vice President RONG Yiren (since 27 March 1993)
Chief of State and Head of Government (de facto):: DENG Xiaoping (since NA 1977)
Head of Government:: Premier LI Peng (Acting Premier since 24 November 1987, Premier since 9 April 1988) Vice Premier ZHU Rongji (since 8 April 1991);
Vice Premier ZOU Jiahua (since 8 April 1991);
Vice Premier QIAN Qichen (since 29 March 1993);
Vice Premier LI Lanqing (29 March 1993)

Member of

AfDB, APEC, AsDB, CCC, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, MINURSO, NAM (observer), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UN Security Council, UNTAC, UNTSO, UN Trusteeship Council, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in US

chief of mission:: Ambassador LI Daoyu
chancery:: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:: (202) 328-2500 through 2502
consulates general:: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission:: Ambassador J. Stapleton ROY
embassy:: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, Beijing
mailing address:: 100600, PSC 461, Box 50, Beijing or FPO AP 96521-0002
telephone:: [86] (1) 532-3831
FAX:: [86] (1) 532-3178
consulates general:: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang

Flag

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

Economy

19 fields

Real growth rate

12.8%

(1992 est.)industrial production growth: growth rate 20.8% (1992)

Inflation, consumer prices

5.4%

(1992)

Unemployment rate

2.3%in urban areas

(1992)

External debt

$69.3billion

(1992)

Overview

Beginning in late 1978 the Chinese leadership has been trying to move the economy from the sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more productive and flexible economy with market elements, but still within the framework of monolithic Communist 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 foreign economic sector to increased trade and joint ventures.

The most gratifying result has been a strong spurt in production, particularly in agriculture in the early 1980s. Industry also has posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment and modern production methods have helped spur production of both domestic and export goods.

Aggregate output has more than doubled since 1978. 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 and thereby lessening the credibility of the reform process.

In 1991, and again in 1992, output rose substantially, particularly in the favored coastal areas. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to the nation's long-term economic viability.

National product

GNP $NA

National product per capita

$NA

Budget

deficit $16.3 billion (1992)

Exports

$85.0 billion (f.o.b., 1992)

commodities:: textiles, garments, telecommunications and recording equipment, petroleum, minerals
partners:: Hong Kong and Macau, Japan, US, Germany, South Korea, Russia (1992)

Imports

$80.6 billion (c.i.f., 1992)

commodities:: specialized industrial machinery, chemicals, manufactured goods, steel, textile yarn, fertilizer
partners:: Hong Kong and Macau, Japan, US, Taiwan, Germany, Russia (1992)

Electricity

158,690,000 kW capacity; 740,000 million kWh produced, 630 kWh per capita (1992)

Industries

iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, consumer durables, food processing

Agriculture

accounts for 26% of GNP;
among the world's largest producers of rice, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, and pork;
commercial crops include cotton, other fibers, and oilseeds;
produces variety of livestock products;
basically self-sufficient in food;
fish catch of 13.35 million metric tons (including fresh water and pond raised) (1991)

Illicit drugs

illicit producer of opium in at least 18 provinces and administrative regions;
bulk of production is in Yunnan Province;
transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle

Economic aid

donor - to less developed countries (1970-89) $7.0 billion;
US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-87), $220.7 million;
Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-87), $13.5 billion

Currency

1 yuan (Y) = 10 jiao

Exchange rates

yuan (Y) per US$1 - 5.7640 (January 1993), 5.5146 (1992), 5.3234 (1991), 4.7832 (1990), 3.7651 (1989), 3.7221 (1988)

Fiscal year

calendar year

Communications

8 fields

Merchant marine, 1,478 ships by type

passenger 25short-sea passenger 42passenger-cargo 18cargo/training 6cargo 811refrigerated cargo 11container 81roll-on/roll-off cargo 18multifunction/barge carrier 1oil tanker 177chemical tanker 11bulk 263liquefied gas 3vehicle carrier 1combination bulk 9barge carrier; note - China beneficially owns an additional 227 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling approximately 6,187,117 DWT that operate under Panamanian, British, Hong Kong, Maltese, Liberian, Vanuatu, Cypriot, Saint Vincent, Bahamian, and Romanian registry 11,478 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,029,320 GRT/21,120,522 DWT

Railroads

total about 64,000 km;
54,000 km of common carrier lines, of which 53,400 km are 1.435-meter gauge (standard) and 600 km are 1.000-meter gauge (narrow);
11,200 km of standard gauge common carrier route are double tracked and 6,900 km are electrified (1990);
an additional 10,000 km of varying gauges (0.762 to 1.067-meter) are dedicated industrial lines

Highways

about 1,029,000 km (1990) total; 170,000 km (est.) paved roads, 648,000 km (est.) gravel/improved earth roads, 211,000 km (est.) unimproved earth roads and tracks

Inland waterways

138,600 km; about 109,800 km navigable

Pipelines

crude oil 9,700 km (1990);
petroleum products 1,100 km;
natural gas 6,200 km

Ports

Dalian, Guangzhou, Huangpu, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Xingang, Zhanjiang, Ningbo, Xiamen, Tanggu, Shantou

Airports

total:: 330
usable:: 330
with permanent-surface runways:: 260
with runways over 3,500 m:: fewer than 10
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:: 90
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:: 200

Telecommunications

domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use;
unevenly distributed internal system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and most townships;
11,000,000 telephones (December 1989);
broadcast stations - 274 AM, unknown FM, 202 (2,050 repeaters) TV;
more than 215 million radio receivers;
75 million TVs;
satellite earth stations - 4 Pacific Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 INMARSAT, and 55 domestic