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- The world’s largest national population, more than 1.3 billion people – 20% of the Earth’s entire population
- More than 90% of the population live in the eastern third of the country
- Full official name is the People’s Republic of China
- Capital city is Beijing, largest city is Shanghai
- Main language is Mandarin Chinese, which has more native speakers than any other language
- The world’s fastest growing and second largest economy, after overtaking Japan in 2011
- Fourth-largest country by area (after Russia, Canada and the US)
- The only country other than Russia and US to have launched a manned space flight; government has set target of establishing a space station by 2020
- Under Communist rule since 1949
- The world’s second-largest oil consumer, after the US
- Very diverse climate – from tropical in the south to subarctic in the northeast
- Chinese cities frequently appear in reports on the world’s most polluted places
