Trade with China

China's economy has changed and grown rapidly since the late 1970s. In terms of purchasing power parity, China has the world's second largest economy and a major player in the global economy. China's economy ($ 12,380,000,000,000,000 in 2012) is the third largest in the world, after the European Union and the United States.

If China's current economic growth continues, China is economically catching up with the United States, the world's largest economy, and must prepare for the political and economic consequences. This will cause major political concerns as the country becomes a much stronger force in the region.

More than 50% of Chinese people are farmers. Artisans make up 24% and employees and businessmen 26% of the country's active workforce. However, about 200 million Chinese people live on less than a dollar a day. Millions of people are still living in extreme poverty, and infrastructure problems continue in China.

China's main industries are very wide and include iron and steel products, coal, machinery, oil and petrochemicals, toys, shoes and electronics. Rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, flax, fish and pork are the main agricultural products. China's major exports are machinery, clothing, footwear, toys, mineral fuels, chemicals, and imports are machinery, chemicals, iron and steel, and mineral fuels. The World Bank has described China's economic situation as favorable and its macroeconomic environment as stable.

The World Bank has described the new figures as a major development. Despite rising GDP, per capita economic output is still very low and China still has a long way to go to reach developed countries.