st.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:

2.265 trillion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)

Current account balance:

$371.8 billion (2007 est.)

Exports:

$1.22 trillion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities:

machinery, electrical products, data processing equipment, apparel,
textile, steel, mobile phones

Exports - partners:

US 19.1%, Hong Kong 15.1%, Japan 8.4%, South Korea 4.6%, Germany 4%
(2007)

Imports:

$904.6 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities:

machinery and equipment, oil and mineral fuels, plastics, LED
screens, data processing equipment, optical and medical equipment,
organic chemicals, steel, copper

Imports - partners:

Japan 14%, South Korea 10.9%, Taiwan 10.5%, US 7.3%, Germany 4.7%
(2007)

Economic aid - recipient:

$1.641 billion (FY07)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$1.534 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external:

$363 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:

$758.9 billion (2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:

$93.75 billion ( 2007 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$4.477 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)

Currency (code):

Renminbi (RMB); note - also referred to by the unit yuan (CNY)

Currency code:

CNY

Exchange rates:

Renminbi yuan (RMB) per US dollar - 7.61 (2007), 7.97 (2006), 8.1943
(2005), 8.2768 (2004), 8.277 (2003)

Communications
China

Telephones - main lines in use:

365.4 million (2007)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

547.286 million (2007)

Telephone system:

general assessment: domestic and international services are
increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed
domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and
many towns; nonetheless, by the end of 2006, more than 95% of
China's villages had been connected to the telephone network; China
continues to develop its telecommunications infrastructure, and is
partnering with foreign providers to expand its global reach; 3 of
China's 6 major telecommunications operators are part of an
international consortium which, in December 2006, signed an
agreement with Verizon Business to build the first next-generation
fiber optic submarine cable system directly linking the US mainland
and China
domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular
telephone systems have been installed; mobile-cellula