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Located in East Asia, on the western shore of the Pacific Ocean, the People's Republic of China (PRC) has a land area of about 9.6 million sq km, and is the third-largest country in the world, next only to Russia and Canada.
China has land borders 22,800 km long, with 14 contiguous countries: Korea to the east; the People's Republic of Mongolia to the north; Russia to the northeast; Kazakhstan, Kirghizstan and Tajikistan to the northwest; Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bhutan to the west and southwest; and Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar to the south.
Across the seas to the east and southeast are the Republic of Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Indonesia. China’s administrative units are currently based on a three-level system dividing the nation into provinces, counties, and townships: The country is divided into provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the Central Government.
| Official name: | People’s Republic of China (PRC) |
| Area (km2): | 9,596,961 square kilometres |
| Population: | 1,330,141,295 (July 2010 estimate) |
| Capital: | Beijing |
| National holiday: | October 1 |
| Time Zone: | GMT +8 |
| International Dialling Code: | +86 |
| Currency: | Renminbi |
| Head of state: | President – Mr. Hu Jintao |
| Head of government: | Premier of the State Council – Mr. Wen Jiabao |
| Foreign Minister: | Mr. Yang Jiechi |
| GDP: | US$4.814 trillion – exchange rate-based (2009) |
| GDP per capita in PPS: | US$ 3,678 exchange rate-based (2009) |
| Real growth rate of GDP: | 8.7% (2009) |
| Unemployment rate: | 4.20 % (March 2010) |
| National debt as % of GDP: | 86.1% (2009) |
| Inflation: | -0.8% (2009 estimate) |
| Public deficit/surplus as % of GDP: | 0.4% (2009) |
Additional facts
| People: | Han Chinese around 92% of the population. The remaining 8% is comprised of 55 minority ethnic groups. |
| Languages: | Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect) (official), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages |
| Religions: | Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2% |
| Government: | Communist Party-Led State. |
| Major Political Parties: | The Chinese Communist Party |
| Membership of international groups/organisations: | WTO,GATT, Doha Round , APEC, ASEAN, IMF, UN, IAEA |
