Economy

Imports
$1.97 trillion (2021). Crude Petroleum ($208B), Integrated Circuits ($171B), Iron Ore ($146B), Petroleum Gas ($56.6B), and Copper Ore ($52.4B), importing mostly from South Korea ($158B), Japan ($153B), United States ($151B), Australia ($138B), and Chinese Taipei ($126B).

In 2021, China was the world’s biggest importer of Crude Petroleum ($208B), Iron Ore ($146B), Petroleum Gas ($56.6B), Copper Ore ($52.4B), and Soybeans ($44.2B).

Financial inclusion factors (over 15 years of  age)
• 88.7% have an account with a financial institution
• 38% have a credit card
• 71.2% make online purchases

Ease of doing business
Very Easy to conduct business (77.9 out of 100) 6th out of 25 Asia Pacific countries, 31st worldwide out of 190 countries (2022, World Bank).

Global Innovation Index
Ranked 3rd out of 17 South East Asia, East Asia and Oceania countries, 11th out of 132 worldwide.

The Global Innovation Index captures the innovation
ecosystem performance of 132 economies and tracks the most recent global innovation trends.

Exports
$3.34 trillion (2021). Broadcasting Equipment ($231B), Computers ($192B), Integrated Circuits ($158B), Office Machine Parts ($101B), and Telephones ($53.9B), exporting mostly to United States ($530B), Hong Kong ($323B), Japan ($168B), South Korea ($140B), and Germany ($134B).

In 2021, China was the world’s biggest exporter of Broadcasting Equipment ($231B), Computers ($192B), Office Machine Parts ($101B), Telephones ($53.9B), and Semiconductor Devices ($49.2B).

Main local online stores
Taobao.com, Tmall.com, 360buy.com, Suning & Gome, QQ buy, Dangdang, Vancl, 51buy& Coo8, Yihaodian, Meituan & 55 tuan, Dianping, Taobao Juhuasuan, Mbaobao, Redbaby, Jiuxian, La Miu, VipShop, FClub, Meilishuo, eTao.

Economic freedom
‘Mostly not free’ (48.3 out of 100) 34th out of 39 countries in Asia Pacific 154th worldwide out of 176 countries (2022, Heritage Foundation and Wall Street Journal).

Media

Media language Chinese, English

Information channels
China is the largest media market in the world, and has the world’s largest online population. Outlets operate under tight Communist Party control. The opening-up of the industry has extended to distribution and advertising, not to editorial content. However, there is leeway for independent coverage that is not perceived as a threat to social stability or the Party. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has described President Xi Jinping as the “planet’s leading censor and press freedom predator” describing government policies as aimed at achieving “complete hegemony over news coverage and the creation of an international media order heavily influenced by China”. Beijing tries to limit access to foreign news by restricting rebroadcasting and the use of satellite receivers, by jamming shortwave broadcasts, including those of the BBC, and by blocking websites. Overseas Chinese-language news outlets that are not state-owned are blocked in mainland China. However, international English language websites like the BBC are often available to view although content that is contrary to Communist Party rhetoric is filtered and English-language news sites can be filtered at times of tension. Fears that the media in Hong Kong would lose its independence when the territory reverted to Chinese control in 1997 have generally not been borne out. Hong Kong still has editorially-dynamic media, but worries about interference remain. TV is available in most homes and the sector is competitive, especially in cities. There are more than 3,300 local, regional and national TV channels. State-run Chinese Central TV (CCTV) is China’s largest media company. Its dominance is challenged by provincial TVs, which are on the air nationally via satellite. China is a major market for pay TV, which is almost entirely delivered by cable. All of China’s 2,600-plus radio stations are state-owned. There are around 1,900 newspapers. Each city has its own title, usually published by the local government, as well as a local Communist Party daily. China spends hugely on TV, radio, online and press outlets targeted at international audiences, aiming to extend its political influence and boost its image. It is less keen to allow foreign players into the domestic market. Phenomenal online growth Around 26.7% of the online population live in rural areas. According to CNNIC, 98.6% of China’s online population can access the internet via a smartphone. There are three powerful online giants, known collectively as “BAT”: Baidu is the top search engine; e-commerce leader Alibaba has allied with Sina, which operates the Weibo microblog platform; and Tencent owns instant messenger WeChat. Because of official censorship, Weibo is losing some of its appeal as a forum where relatively uncensored news can be shared. WeChat, Tencent’s take on the WhatsApp instant messenger, has the largest number of domestic users of any social media service in China. China has the world’s largest online video market. Streaming platforms, including market leader iQiyi, Youku Tudou and Sohu have a huge following and pose a challenge to traditional TV. An extensive web filtering system, dubbed the “Great Firewall of China”, blocks tens of thousands of sites using URL filtering and keyword censoring. Thousands of cyber-police watch the web and material deemed politically and socially sensitive is filtered. Blocked resources include Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and human rights sites. The use of circumvention tools, including virtual private networks (VPNs), became harder after China strengthened its firewall to allow it to intercept data traffic to and from individual IP addresses. This was coined the “Great Fire Cannon” when it came into effect in 2015. The government since has signalled that it will ban unapproved VPNs.

The press

People’s Daily (Renmin Ribao) – Communist Party daily, web pages in English
China Youth Daily (Zhongguo Qingnian Bao) – state-run, linked to Communist Youth League
China Daily – official English-language paper
Global Times (Huanqiu Shibao) – state-run, editions in English and Chinese, focuses on world affairs
People’s Liberation Army Daily (Jiefangjun Bao) – web pages in English
Reference News (Cankao Xiaoxi) – published by official news agency Xinhua
21^st Century (21 Jingji) – leading business newspaper, privately-owned

Television

Chinese Central TV (CCTV) – state-run national broadcaster; 18 free-to-air networks
China Global TV Network (CGTN) – state-run international broadcaster; networks in English, Arabic, French, Russian, Spanish

Radio

China National Radio – state-run
China Radio International – state-run external broadcaster, programmes in more than 40 languages, notably to Taiwan and Korea

News agency

Xinhua (New China News Agency) – state-run, web pages in English
China News Service (CNS) – state-run, web pages in English

Internet Data

Internet users
73.7% penetration, 1.05 billion

Share of web traffic by device
53.72% mobile phones, 45.38% computers (laptops and desktops), 0.90% tablet devices.

Average speed of mobile Internet connection
109.40 Mbps

Average speed of fixed Internet connection
214.58 Mbps

Mobile connection as a percentage of total population: 118.6%

Percentage of mobile connections that are broadband (3G-5G): 99.6%

Most popular web search engines
Baidu (60.47%), Bing (15.24%), Sogou (10.31%), Haosou (5.55 %), Google (3.26%), other (5.17%).

Most used social media
Facebook (60.04%), Twitter (19.33%), Pinterest (7.28%), YouTube (7.15%), Instagram (2.34%), Sina Weibo (1.46%) VKontakte (0.81%), other (1.58%).

Social statistics

Life expectancy
78 yrs (2021)

Current health expenditure
5.59% of GDP

Current education expenditure
88.5% of total expenditure in public institutions

CO2 emissions
7.8 metric tons per capita

Cultural Curiosities
It is customary in the Chinese tradition to refuse gifts at least one time before accepting it, so do not react badly if your gifts are rejected at first. 

When at the table it is considered a sign of appreciation of the food to burp after eating. Moreover, when at a restaurant it is impolite to leave a tip to the waiter. Lastly, Chinese people regard it as normal to spit on the streets and sometimes even indoors in public places such as buses or stations. 

Corruption perceptions Index
China scored 45 out of 100, ranked 65th out of 180 countries worldwide.

World Happiness Index
China ranked 72nd out of 146 countries, with a score of 5.585.

Share of cities affected by acid rain
37.6%

Investment in pollution control
1.15 (% of GDP)

Use of Colors in China
Like in many countries, certain colors in China have scribed meanings. Red is the color of happiness, of positivity. For example when a baby is born the congratulations are often delivered in a red envelope. Historically, red was associated with fire. There is a Chinese saying “hóng hóng huǒ huǒ” which means the life of someone who grows, prospers, cracks and rockets like a red flame. 

White also has a particular significance in the Chinese tradition, it is a color used to express sympathy in sad occasions. It must be avoided in celebratory occurrences such as weddings. It is a delicate color to use when conducting branding campaigns. 

Yellow is a risky color to use when doing business in China, this color in publication and media is associated with pornographic material.