Full Name - People's Republic of China

Capital City - Beijing

Geography
Total area: 9,596,960 sq. km. (about 3.7 million sq. mi.).
Cities: Capital--Beijing. Other major cities--Shanghai, Tianjin, Shenyang, Wuhan, Guangzhou, Chongqing, Harbin, Chengdu.
Terrain: Plains, deltas, and hills in east; mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west.
Climate: Tropical in south to subarctic in north.

People
Nationality: Noun and adjective - Chinese (singular and plural).
Population (2003 est.): 1.3 billion.
Population growth rate (2003 est.): 0.6%.
Health (2003 est.): Infant mortality rate--25.26/1,000. Life expectancy--72.22 years (overall); 70.33 years for males, 74.28 years for females.
Ethnic groups: Han Chinese--91.9%; Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao, Uygur, Yi, Mongolian, Tibetan, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities--8.1%.
Religions: Officially atheist; Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, Christianity.
Language: Mandarin (Putonghua), plus many local dialects.
Education: Years compulsory--9. Literacy--86%.
Work force (2001 est.,): 711 million

Government
Type: Communist party-led state.
Constitution: December 4, 1982.
Independence: Unification under the Qin (Ch'in) Dynasty 221 BC; Qing (Ch'ing or Manchu) Dynasty replaced by a republic on February 12, 1912; People's Republic established October 1, 1949.
Branches: Executive--president, vice president, State Council, premier. Legislative-unicameral National People's Congress. Judicial--Supreme People's Court.
Administrative divisions: 23 provinces (the P.R.C. considers Taiwan to be its 23rd province); 5 autonomous regions, including Tibet; 4 municipalities directly under the State Council.
Political parties: Chinese Communist Party, 66.35 million members; 8 minor parties under communist supervision.
Suffrage: Universal at 18.

Economy
GDP (2004): $1.65 trillion (exchange rate based).
Per capita GDP (2004): $1,200 (exchange rate based).
GDP real growth rate (2004 est.): 9.5%.
Natural resources: Coal, iron ore, crude oil, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest).
Agriculture: Products--Among the world's largest producers of rice, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley; commercial crops include cotton, other fibers, oilseeds, pork and fish; produces variety of livestock products.
Industry: Types--iron, steel, coal, machinery, light industrial products, textiles and apparel, armaments, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, automobiles, consumer electronics and telecommunications.
Trade (2004): Exports--$593 billion: mainly electrical machinery and equipment, power generation equipment, apparel, toys, footwear. Main partners--U.S., Hong Kong, Japan, EU, South Korea, Singapore. Imports--$561 billion: mainly electrical equipment, power generation equipment, petroleum products, chemicals, steel. Main partners--Japan, EU, Taiwan, South Korea, U.S., Hong Kong.

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