+86 is the dialing code for China.
China is the world’s most populous country and one of the largest to surface. Here arose one of the earliest high cultures a few thousand years ago. Paper, porcelain and silk are examples of inventions made in China hundreds of years before they reached Europe. After a long weakening since the 19th century, China has risen again and regained its position as one of the world’s great powers, not least economically. According to ZhengSourcing, China has become the second largest economy in the world since 2012. The Communist Party, which took power in 1949 after a long civil war, still reigns supreme.
- Abbreviationfinder: Brief profiles of China, including geography, history, politics, economics as well as common acronyms about this country.
Geography and climate
On the surface, China is one of the world’s largest countries, smaller than Russia and Canada and about as large as the United States. The ocean to the east and south-east, the mountains to the west and southwest, the deserts to the northwest and the hard-to-see rainforests in the south have all contributed to China’s relative isolation through the millennia.
Large parts of the country’s mountainous interior are extremely sparsely populated. Western and southwestern China is covered by the huge Tibetan high plateau, which in the south is bordered by the world’s largest mountain range, the Himalayas. There, on the border with Nepal, is also the highest mountain of the earth, Qomolangma or Mount Everest.
In 2010, a tough dispute between Nepal and China was settled over the height of Mount Everest. China then accepted Nepal’s line, which meant that the snow cover on the mountain would be included, and the official height was set at 8,848 meters. In return, Nepal agreed that China’s measuring point, the peak of the mountain itself under the snow, was 8,844 meters. However, there are geologists who question whether any of these measures is correct. According to their theories, the rock is constantly getting higher due to the movement of the continental plates. In 1999, an American research group measured the rock with GPS technology and found that it was 8,850 meters high.
Country Facts
Geography
| Cultivated land | 54.7 % |
| Land area | 9596960 km 2 |
Population and health
| Population development | 0.45 ‰ |
| Urban population (Urbanization) | 55.6 % |
| Death rate | 7.53 per 1000 residents |
| Life expectancy: Women | 77.73 years |
| Life expectancy: Men | 73.38 years |
| Birth rate | 12.49 births per 1000 residents |
| HDI index | 0.727 |
| Population | 1367485388 |
| Infant mortality | 12.44 deaths / 1000 births |
Population Graph Source: Countryaah.com
Energy
| Electricity, production | 5650000 million kWh |
| Energy consumption per resident | 2142.8 kg. oil per resident |
| Natural gas, production | 121500 million cubic meters |
| Crude oil, production | 215 million tons |
Infrastructure
| Internet users | 46.0 per 100 residents |
| Mobile subscriptions | 94 per 100 residents |
| Passenger cars | 83 per 1000 residents |
Business and economics
| Unemployment | 4.2% of the workforce |
| GDP | 14100 per resident |
| Primary occupations | 36.7 % |
| Secondary profession | 28.7 % |
| Tertiary professions | 34.6 % |
China shares borders with 14 countries (see map). The country’s borders have been disputed over the years and even today, China and India are arguing over the right to border areas. In the ocean off the east coast, China claims the barren uninhabited small archipelago (Diaoyu / Senkaku) controlled by Japan while also having an ongoing conflict with some Southeast Asian countries about the Paracel and Spratly islands, which are not only strategically located but also rich on fish as well as oil and natural gas. China’s leaders also claim that Taiwan is part of the People’s Republic of China (see also Foreign Policy and Defense).
The country has been likened to a huge staircase from central and southeastern China’s fertile river valleys and coastal landscapes to the plateaus at a height of 1000-2000 meters further west and finally up to the dramatic heights of the inland. In the northwest, Xinjiang’s vast expanses of steppe and desert areas are expanding. To the east are the eroded loam areas where the country’s second largest river Huanghe (the Yellow River) retrieves the soil deposits that form the densely populated, dry North China Plain. The lowland in the southeast is hilly with plains and river valleys.
The whimsical Yellow River, whose floods often caused disasters, has never been particularly important as a traffic lane. On the other hand, it has the mighty Changjiang or Yangtze River (Long River), which with its 630 miles is one of the world’s longest and busiest riverways. Northern China’s largest river is Heilongjiang (Amur), and in southern China the three rivers Xijiang (West River), Beijiang and Dongjiang radiate into the fertile delta where the great Zhujiang (Pearl River) flows into the South China Sea.
Climate
China’s northernmost reaches about the same latitude as northern Germany, while its southernmost point lies in the tropics. Eastern China has a sea climate and in the south there is a subtropical climate. However, most of the country has a temperate, continental climate, characterized by the continent’s monsoon winds and neighboring seas. The temperature varies considerably during the year; winters are usually colder and summers warmer than other countries at the same latitude.
The winter monsoon from the north and northwest brings down cold and dry air from Siberia and gives northern China bitter winters. In January, the average temperature in northern Manchuria is below –10 ºC and it is not uncommon for cold snaps of –20 ºC and colder. The southern summer monsoon brings in humid air, especially in the southern and eastern parts of the country and most of the rainfall falls during the summer. In some areas, the annual rainfall can amount to about 2000 mm. The rainfall decreases to the northwest and is less than 250 mm per year in the Xinjiang desert areas.
FACTS – GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE
Surface
9 600 000 km2 (2018)
Time
Swedish + 7 hours
Adjacent country (s)
Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Russia, North Korea
Capital with number of residents
Beijing 15 600,000 residents
Other major cities
Shanghai 20.2 million, Guangzhou 10.8 million, Shenzhen 10.6 million, Chongqing 9.9 million (UN estimate 2011)
Highest mountain
Qomolangma (Mount Everest on the border with Nepal, 8848 m asl)
Important rivers
Yangtze River (Changjiang), Yellow River (Huanghe), West River (Xijiang), Pearl River (Zhujiang), Amur (Heilongjiang)
Average Precipitation / month
Beijing 3 mm (Jan), 176 mm (July) 1
Average / day
Beijing -5 °C (Jan), 26 °C (July) 2
- Guangzhou (Canton) 43 mm (Jan), 228 mm (July)
2. Guangzhou (Canton) 14 °C (Jan), 29 °C (July)Sources
2013
December
A smoking ban is introduced
The government issues a ban for public employees to smoke in public places such as schools, offices, hospitals and public communications.
Cheating in Hunan
More than five hundred City Council members in Hunan Province resign after a scandal. The members had been revealed to receive money from 56 other politicians who wanted to be elected to the provincial parliament. The trick was successful but even the 56 were forced to resign when the election fraud was revealed.
Clashes in Xinjiang
16 people have been killed in clashes near the city of Kashgar in Xinjiang, domestic media reports. Two weeks later, eight men are said to have been shot dead when they attacked a police station in the same area.
Successful moon landing
China succeeds as the third country in the world, after the US and USSR, to implement a lunar landing in mid-December with Chang’e-3. Chinese media describe it as a Chinese dream that has finally come true.
November
Flight zone in the East China Sea
The special flight zone introduced by China means that aircraft located in the zone must report the destination and maintain contact. Otherwise, some form of retaliation is at risk. Both Japan and the United States protest against the zone, which lies above the islands disputed by Japan and China, Senkaku / Diaoyu. South Korea also claims a rock formation in the sea area. The US shortly afterwards sends two B-52 bombers into the zone without reporting their presence in accordance with China’s new requirements. US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel also confirms that the United States is sticking to its guarantees of defending Japan if the country is attacked. Later, both Japan and South Korea send aircraft into the zone without following Chinese regulations, while China sends military aircraft to the area.
Amendment of the one-child policy
The Communist Party Central Committee holds its third plenary meeting at the beginning of the month. Expectations for the meeting are high as party officials have suggested that major reforms will be presented. After the meeting, the party management announces that market forces will have a greater role in the economy, including in the energy area and interest rates. A new group will be formed to lead the in-depth reform work. A special state committee on security issues relating to international relations and military issues will also be formed. At the November party meeting, the party announced that the one-child policy should be loosened up for couples in the cities and that the system of labor camps should be abolished. New Chinese leaders have traditionally used the third plenary to present their policies and major changes.
New party
A university professor is said to have formed a political party, Zhi Xian, with lifetime convicted Bo Xilai as chairman. The party must act in accordance with the constitution which stipulates that the Communist Party governs the country but allows other political parties to exist.
Bombing in Shanxi
At least one person is killed and several are injured in explosions outside the Communist Party headquarters in the city of Taiyuan in Shanxi Province. The act is said to have been carried out with home-made bombs.
October
Lighting in the economy
Economic statistics show growth of 7.8 percent in the third quarter, which is three percentage points better than the quarter before. The important service sector is growing faster in October than in several months.
“Terrorist act” in Beijing
A jeep drives straight into a crowd at the entrance to the Forbidden City on Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The car starts to burn and the area is blocked off. Five people of Uighur origin are arrested, according to state media. Five people are killed in the car crash, which the authorities describe as a suicide attack and terrorist act. Three of the victims are in the car and two are tourists. According to the authorities, the Islamic movement of the East Turkestan is behind the attack.
The appeal is rejected
Bo Xilai’s attempt to appeal the life sentence for bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power in September of that year was rejected by a Chinese court and his life sentence is thus upheld.
Defense agreement with India
Following a meeting between Prime Minister Li Keqiang and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Beijing, both countries enter into an agreement on defense cooperation in the disputed border areas of the Himalayas. The purpose is to reduce the risk of border conflicts.
Firing in Tibet
Some 60 Tibetans are injured after police fired protesters in Tibet.
September
Sanctions against North Korea
Chinese authorities state that they have banned exports to North Korea of weapons components that can be used for nuclear weapons development.
Life imprisonment for Bo Xilai
Former top politician Bo Xilai is considered guilty of bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power. The Jinan court did not take into account Bo Xilai’s argument that his prior recognition had been pressed under torture. Bo Xilai immediately appeals the verdict.
August
Trial against Bo Xilai begins
22 August
The trial of the former party secretary in Chongqing Bo Xilai starts in Jinan city (see July 2013 and March-April 2012, respectively)
Top official is kicked
A senior executive in the state administration gets fired and excluded from the Communist Party after it is discovered that he has received bribes.
Organ donations change
Information is released that the Ministry of Health will launch a new organ donation system that will be based on voluntary donors. The use of organs by executed prisoners severely criticized by human rights organizations will gradually cease.
July
Prosecution of Bo Xilai
According to prosecutors, top politician Bo Xilai has been guilty of corruption and abuse of power. During his time as party leader in Chongqing, he should have received large sums and properties as bribes. He is also charged with misappropriation of public funds. No date for the trial will be announced (see also March 2012)
Attorney is locked in
Attorney Xu Zhiyong is being held in police custody for “gathering people to disrupt public order”. Xu is known for his work against corruption and for human rights. During a house search in Xu’s home, cell phones and computers are seized. Xu has for a long period advocated that government officials should report their financial assets publicly.
Growth is leveling out
For the second quarter in a row, China’s economy is showing somewhat weaker growth. In the first quarter of 2013, economic growth was 7.7 percent, in the second quarter the figure was 7.5 percent. In an effort to stimulate the economy, tax cuts are introduced for small businesses and lower export taxes. An extension of the railway network is also included in the Government’s package of measures.
Former minister receives death penalty
Former Railway Minister Liu Zhijun is sentenced to death with a two-year suspension for corruption in the multi- million class and abuse of power (see April 2013). Liu is the highest ranking politician in the Communist Party to be convicted of corruption since President Xi Jinping’s entry into power. Conditional death sentences such as this are usually converted into life imprisonment.
June
Severe unrest in Xinjiang
A few days later, the Chinese news agency Xinhua reports that 35 people were killed in connection with a riot in Turpan prefecture, about 20 kilometers southeast of Xinjiang’s “capital” Urumqi. According to Xinhua, a crowd equipped with knives must have attacked a police station and a public building. The deaths should have happened when the riot police clashed with the crowd. At least 16 of those killed are Uighurs. There are no independent reports that can confirm this information. Following reports of yet another attack on a police station in the area, the military is strengthening its presence there.
Uighurs are punished
Eleven people in Xinjiang are sentenced to prison for various kinds of religious and ethnic hate crimes. Their names indicate that all are Uighurs. A man gets six years in prison for calling for Islamic holy war via the internet.
Regime critics visit Taiwan
Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng makes an 18-day visit to Taiwan, where he meets with opposition and discusses the human rights situation in China. Guangcheng’s trip is irritating in Beijing.
Astronauts are sent up into space
China sends out three australos into space. One of the three astronauts is a woman. China’s goal is to set up a permanently manned space station by the end of the 2010s.
April
Unrest in Xinjiang
About twenty people are reported to have been killed in clashes between police and activists in Kashgar in Xinjiang. According to Chinese media, the activists are suspected terrorists.
Powerful earthquake in Sichuan
April 20
Nearly 200 people lose their lives and about 12,000 are reported injured when Sichuan is shaken by a severe earthquake.
Bird flu spreads
A bird flu virus H7N9 first discovered in February in eastern China is spreading to Beijing. In total, 37 people have been infected, probably from domestic birds, and nine have died in the disease.
Prosecution against former railway minister
Former Railway Minister Liu Zhijun is suspected of corruption and abuse of power. He is accused of receiving bribes in connection with the procurement before the construction of high-speed connections.
March
Uighurs convicted of terrorist offenses
20 Uighurs are sentenced to long prison terms for terrorism and separatist activity in Xinjiang.
New government
March 16
Wang Yi is Foreign Minister, Chang Wanquan Defense Minister and Lou Jiwei Finance Minister in the new government.
Xi Jinping new president
14th of March
National People’s Congress appoints Xi Jinping as China’s new president. Li Yuanchao is elected Vice President. One day later, Li Keqiang is elected new Prime Minister. He is considered to be close to the departing Hu Jintao.
February
Demand for reforms
For the second time in three months, academics, journalists and other activists are appealing for political reform in a letter to the country’s leaders. Above all, it wants China to ratify the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The letter signed by over a hundred people has been posted on various blogs and websites.
Measures for increased equality
The government adopts a plan to make the income distribution in the country more equitable, among other things, the minimum wage should be increased and investments made in education and cheaper housing.
Intervention against Japanese military ship
Japan accuses Chinese vessels of locking a weapons radar on a Japanese military vessel on two occasions in January. China rejects the allegations.
January
Hundred dead in self burns
Yet another Tibetan is setting fire to himself in Gansu province, according to ex-Tibetan sources. A total of 98 Tibetans have died in this way since 2009 in protest against religious liberty and Beijing’s harsh rule. Later that month, a Tibetan in Sichuan is sentenced to ten years in prison for soliciting self-incrimination. According to Tibetan activists, he has been forced to plead guilty.
Unusual newspaper strike
Journalists in the South Seas weekly magazine (Nanfang Zhoumo) in Guangdong city in early January launch a strike after the province’s propaganda chief changed an editorial in the newspaper urging Xi Jinping to implement reforms to meet the constitution’s guarantees on human rights. Journalists demand the departure of the propaganda chief. The conflict is getting a lot of attention, including in foreign media, and leads to confrontations in Canton between neo-Maoists and censorship supporters on the one hand and freedom of the press activists demonstrating in support of journalists on the other. After negotiations with the province’s new party leader, Hu Chunhua, who has been designated as a possible successor to Xi Jinping, the journalists cancel the strike. However, the details of the resolution of the conflict are not known.