Land

Area: 9,562,904 sq. km (3,692,244 sq. mi.).
Capital: Peking (Beijing; 1989 est. pop., 6,800,000). Largest city: Shanghai (1989 est. pop., 7,330,000).
Elevations: highest--Mount Everest, 8,848 m (29,028 ft) on the border of Tibet and Nepal; lowest--154 m (505 ft) below sea level, Turfan Depression.
Farm Land 11% of the land mass.

People

Population (1999 est.): 1,300,000,000; density 122.3 persons per sq. km (317.7 per sq. mi.). Distribution (1992): 26% urban, 74% rural. Annual growth (1992): 1.6%.
Official language: Mandarin Chinese. Major religions: Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, and folk religions.

Education and Health

Literacy (1990 est.): 73% of adult population.
Universities and other higher-education institutes (1989): 1,079.
Hospital beds (1990): 2,624,000.
Physicians (1990): 1,763,000. Life expectancy (1992): women--72; men--69.
Infant mortality (1992): 32 per 1,000 live births.

Economy

GNP (1989): $413 billion; $371 per capita.
Labor distribution (1990): agriculture and fishing--60%; manufacturing--17%; commerce and services--13%; construction--4%; government and public authorities--2%.
Foreign trade (1991): imports--$63.8 billion; exports--$71.9 billion; principal trade partners--Hong Kong, United States, Japan, Germany. Currency: Renminbi (Yuan) = 100 fen.

Government

Type: single-party Communist state. Government leaders (1993):
Jiang Zemin--President and Communist Party General Secretary;
Li Peng--Prime Minister.
Legislature: National People's Congress.
Political subdivisions: 24 provinces (including Taiwan), 5 municipalities, and 5 autonomous regions.

Communications

Railroads (1990): 66,918 km (41,581 mi.) total.
Roads (1990): 1,014,342 km (630,283 mi.) total.
Major ports: 9.