Head of state: Emperor Akihito Prime minister: Yoshihiko Noda
Population
1,343,239,923
127,368,088
Life Expectancy
74.840 years
83.910 years
Capital City
Beijing
Tokyo
Largest city
Shanghai (population: 14,608,500)
Tokyo (population: 8,336,600)
Human Development Index
0.762
0.956
GDP per capita
$8,500 US
$35,200 US
Literacy Rate
90.9%
99%
Corruption Perception Index
3.6
7.3
Percentage of Women in Parliament
21.3%
12.3%
Wealthiest Citizens
Liu Yongxing ($3.0bn US)
Tadashi Yanai & family ($6.0bn US)
Unemployment Rate
6.500%
4.600%
Death Penalty
Legal
Legal
Political System
Communist state
constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government
Independence date
221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty); 1 January 1912 (Qing or Ch'ing Dynasty replaced by the Republic of China); 1 October 1949 (People's Republic of China established)
660 B.C. (traditional date of the founding of the nation by Emperor JIMMU)
Religions
Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2% note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
Languages
Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
Japanese
Exports
electrical and other machinery, including data processing equipment, apparel, textile, iron and steel, optical and medical equipment
transport equipment, motor vehicles, semiconductors, electrical machinery, chemicals
External Debt
$697,200,000,000 $
$2,719,000,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
Renminbi yuan (RMB) per US dollar - 6.9385 (2008 est.), 7.61 (2007), 7.97 (2006), 8.1943 (2005), 8.2768 (2004)
yen (JPY) per US dollar - 103.58 (2008 est.), 117.99 (2007), 116.18 (2006), 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
4.300%
0.800%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
100
25
Location
Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam
Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula
Area
9,596,961 km sq
377,915 km sq
Coastline
14,500 km
29,751 km
Climate
extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north
varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
