China Today
Getting to know China could be a life’s work
China is a vast and complex country – from rural agricultural villages to high-tech super-cities, the mountainous west to the plains of the east, from the cold dry north to the hot humid south, from the desperately poor to the extremely rich…….the diversity of the present and the rich tapestry of its past means that trying to understand China can seem like an impossible objective.
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Great HistoryChina has over 5,000-years of recorded history. The compass, gunpowder, the art of paper-making and block printing were all invented by the ancient Chinese. The Great Wall, Grand Canal, the Imperial Palace and other projects were, and still are, regarded as massive feats of engineering.
More recently China has, since 1979, gradually opened up for trade (Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Shantou and Xiamen being the first Special Economic Zones to open), since then, China's economy has boomed.
China's Political SystemFounded in 1921, the Communist Party of China (CPC) established the People's Republic of China in 1949 after an armed struggle. The CPC now has more than 60 million members.
The CPC has both central and local organizations. At the top is the Central Committee - and when it is not in session, the Political Bureau and its Standing Committee exercise the power of the Central Committee. Both the Political Bureau and its Standing Committee are elected by plenary session of the Central Committee.
Mr. Hu Jintao is the president and chairman of the Central Military Commission of the People's Republic of China. Mr. Wen Jiabao is the premier of the State Council.
Booming EconomyChina has a 'five-year-plan' strategy for economic development - i.e. development, priorities and targets are set on a 5 year cycle basis. The 9th Five-Year Plan (1996-2000) and the 10th Five-Year Plan (2001-2005) were outstandingly successful. Most of the targets were achieved ahead of schedule.
At present, the government is in the midst of the 11th Five-Year Plan (2006-2010). In this Five-Year Plan period, China is particularly focused on environmental improvement, transformation of industrial structure and rural regional development.
China's economy has been experiencing double-digit annual growth since 1979. According to the National Bureau of Statistics of China in 2008, China's
GDP was approx.
EUR 3,319.4 billion - an increase of 9% over the previous year.
China's Gross Domestic Product:
| Year |
Gross Domestic Product |
Per Capita GDP |
| |
(1 billion EUR) |
(EUR) |
| 1997 |
789.7 |
642 |
| 1998 |
844.0 |
680 |
| 1999 |
896.8 |
716 |
| 2000 |
992.1 |
786 |
| 2001 |
1,096.6 |
862 |
| 2002 |
1,203.3 |
940 |
| 2003 |
1,358.2 |
1,054 |
| 2004 |
1,598.8 |
1,234 |
| 2005 |
1,838.7 |
1,410 |
| 2006 |
2,108.7 |
1,608 |
| 2007 |
2,466.2 |
1,871 |
| 2008 |
3,319.4 |
2,368 |
- Total export value was approx. EUR 1,075.3 billion - 17.2% increase.
- Total import value was approx. EUR 854.5 billion - 18.5% increase.
- Foreign direct investment was approx. EUR 69.7 billion - 23.6% increase.
- Total consumer retail sales of approx. EUR 1197.7 billion - 21.6% annual growth.
Learn more about the Chinese economy - China Business News
Industry - the World's FactoryChina now has a very strong manufacturing capacity. According to the Business Germany Association (BGA), China will overtake Germany and U.S to become the world's biggest exporter by 2010.
2008 Output of Raw Material Products:
| Product Name |
Output
(Million) |
Unit |
Increase Rate
(%) |
| Plastics |
37.14 |
Tone |
10.1 |
| Cement |
1388 |
Tone |
5.2 |
| Flat glass |
551.85 |
Container |
6.5 |
| Iron |
824.01 |
Tone |
20.7 |
| Steel |
581.77 |
Tone |
3.6 |
| Copper |
15.7 |
Tone |
1.8 |
| Aluminium |
19.4 |
Tone |
27.0 |
| Etc. |
|
|
|
2008 Output of Machinery Products:
| Product Name |
Output
(Million) |
Unit |
Increase Rate
(%) |
| Large & medium-sized tractors |
0.22 |
Set |
12.8 |
| Automotive |
9.5 |
Set |
7.0 |
| Power Generator |
90.51 |
KW |
9.6 (decrease) |
| Etc. |
|
|
|
2008 Output of Household Products:
| Product Name |
Output
(Million) |
Unit |
Increase Rate
(%) |
| Washing machine |
42.31 |
Set |
11.1 |
| Refrigerator |
47.57 |
Set |
8.0 |
| Television |
90.33 |
Set |
6.5 |
| Air-conditioner |
93 |
Piece |
16.0 |
| Mobile Phone |
559.64 |
Set |
2.0 |
| Computer |
174 |
Set |
14.0 |
| Etc. |
|
|
|
Huge Market - What do Chinese people want?According to statistics for 2008,
China has a population of 1,328.02 million people, 6.37 million more than the year before.
2008 China Demographics:
| |
Number of People
(in million)
|
Percentage
(%)
|
| Total Nation's Population |
1,328 |
100.0 |
| Urban |
607 |
45.7 |
| Rural |
721 |
54.3 |
| Male |
684 |
51.5 |
| Female |
644 |
48.5 |
| Age 0 - 14 |
252 |
19.4 |
| Age 15 - 59 |
916 |
69.0 |
| Age 60 & above |
160 |
11.6 |
Based on incomplete statistics from the Chinese Taxation Administration, as at March 2008, China had around 50m 'very rich' people, who together own assets of approx. 1 trillion EUR. Further, 22% Chinese (about 0.3 billion) are classed as being 'Middle Class'.
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Key TrendsLuxury: The World Luxury Association (WLA) estimates that China's luxury consumers represent about 18% of the world's luxury market in 2007. The WLA estimated that the share would be 32% in 2015 - over United States and Japan, becoming the world's top luxury market at that stage.
Travel: In 2008, 46 million Chinese citizens travelled outside of China. This is an increase of 14.7% compared to 2007.
Language: According to the Social Survey Institute of China, the market value of China's English training industry was over 1.5 billion EUR in 2007. 10% of Chinese people's income is being invested into education every year. English, IT and early education are the main growth areas within China's education industry.
Mobile Phones: Chinese mobile phone market:
To meet more China's industrial suppliers - Visit Trade Shows in China
Bring your products to China's market
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Calendar of EventsChina's national holiday schedule in
2009:
- Spring Festival (Chinese New Year)
- January 25th (Sunday) - 31st (Saturday)
- Qing Ming Festival (Remembrance Day)
- April 6th (Monday)
- Labour Day
- May 1st (Friday)
- Duan Wu Festival (Dragon Boat Festival)
- May 28th (Thursday) - 30th (Saturday)
- Mid-Autumn Festival (Moon Festival)
- October 3rd (Saturday)
- National Day
- October 1st (Thursday) - 8th (Thursday)
To make a better travel plan - China's business trip
China Events:
- World Expo 2010 - May 1, 2010
- Asian Games - November 12, 2010
- China-ASEAN Expo - October, Annually
To learn more about China - China's Useful Links
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