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Economy overview
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In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish, inefficient, Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state organizations and individual citizens has been steadily increasing. The authorities switched to a system of household and village 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 enterprises 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. Measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis, China in 2003 stood as the second-largest economy in the world after the US, although in per capita terms the country is still poor. Agriculture and industry have posted major gains especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong, opposite Taiwan, and in Shanghai, where foreign investment has helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. The leadership, however, often has experienced - as a result of its hybrid system - the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (growing income disparities and rising unemployment). China thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) sustain adequate jobs growth for tens of millions of workers laid off from state-owned enterprises, migrants, and new entrants to the work force; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises, many of which had been shielded from competition by subsidies and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 80 to 120 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 long-term growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to 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. Beijing says it will intensify efforts to stimulate growth through spending on infrastructure - such as water supply and power grids - and poverty relief and through rural tax reform. Accession to the World Trade Organization helps strengthen its ability to maintain strong growth rates but at the same time puts additional pressure on the hybrid system of strong political controls and growing market influences. China has benefited from a huge expansion in computer internet use. Foreign investment remains a strong element in China's remarkable economic growth. Growing shortages of electric power and raw materials will hold back the expansion of industrial output in 2004.
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GDP
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purchasing power parity - $6.449 trillion (2004 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate
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9.1% (official data) (2004 est.)
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GDP - per capita
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purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2004 est.)
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GDP - composition by sector
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agriculture: 14.8%
industry and construction: 52.9%
services: 32.3% (2004 est.)
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Investment gross fixed
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43.4% of GDP (2004 est.)
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Population below poverty line
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10% (2001 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share
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lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 30.4% (1998)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index
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40 (2001)
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Inflation rate consumer prices
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1.2% (2004 est.)
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Labor force
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778.1 million (2004 est.)
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Labor force by occupation
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agriculture 50%, industry 22%, services 28% (2001 est.)
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Unemployment rate
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10.1% urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2004 est.)
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Budget
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revenues: $265.8 billion
expenditures: $300.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2004 est.)
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Public debt
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30.1% of GDP (2004 est.)
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Agriculture products
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rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed, pork, fish
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Industries
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iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications
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Industrial production growth rate
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30.4% (2004 est.)
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Electricity production
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1.42 trillion kWh (2001)
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Electricity production by source
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fossil fuel: 80.2%
hydro: 18.5%
other: 0.1% (2001)
nuclear: 1.2%
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Electricity consumption
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1.312 trillion kWh (2001)
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Electricity exports
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10.3 billion kWh (2001)
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Electricity imports
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1.8 billion kWh (2001)
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Oil production
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3.3 million bbl/day (2004 est.)
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Oil consumption
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4.57 million bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil exports
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151,200 bbl/day (2001)
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Oil imports
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1.207 million bbl/day (2001)
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Oil proved reserves
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26.75 billion bbl (2004)
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Natural gas production
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30.3 billion cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas consumption
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27.4 billion cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas exports
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0 cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas imports
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0 cu m (2001 est.)
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Natural gas proved reserves
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1.29 trillion cu m (2004)
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Current account balance
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$31.17 billion (2004 est.)
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Exports
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$436.1 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
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Exports commodities
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machinery and equipment, textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods, mineral fuels
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Exports partners
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US 21.1%, Hong Kong 17.4%, Japan 13.6%, South Korea 4.6%, Germany 4% (2003)
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Imports
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$397.4 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
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Imports commodities
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machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals
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Imports partners
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Japan 18%, Taiwan 11.9%, South Korea 10.4%, US 8.2%, Germany 5.9% (2003)
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Reserves of foreign exchange gold
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$412.7 billion (2004 est.)
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Debt external
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$197.8 billion (2004 est.)
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Economic aid recipient
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NA
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Currency
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yuan (CNY)
note:: also referred to as the Renminbi (RMB)
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Currency code
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CNY
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Exchange rates
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yuan per US dollar - 8.277 (2003), 8.277 (2002), 8.2771 (2001), 8.2785 (2000), 8.2783 (1999)
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Fiscal year
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calendar year
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This information was reproduced in part from the CIA World Fact book.
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