China (Reaches New Heights)

Author: Hu Angang
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: The 15th Five-Year Plan period (2001-2005) marked a new era in China's modernization and opening-up efforts in the new century. It was the starting phase for China to transition from a generally moderately prosperous society to a comprehensively well-off society, as well as a critical period for strategic adjustments in China's economic structure and the improvement of the socialist market economy system and opening-up. This period symbolized China's entry into a golden age of accelerated and coordinated development. Surprisingly, China made significant strides in five areas:
1. Economic scale: Calculated at constant 2000 prices, China's GDP exceeded 1.56 trillion yuan in 2005, with per capita GDP reaching 12,000 yuan.
2. Living standards and quality: The annual average real growth rates of per capita income for urban and rural residents were 9.6% and 5.3%, respectively. China's Human Development Index (HDI) rose to 0.755 in 2003, ranking 85th among 177 countries and regions worldwide, while its Human Poverty Index (HPI) ranked 27th among 103 developing countries and regions.
3. Total social capital (referring to the five capitals: material, human, natural, knowledge, and international capital) reached a new high, with its proportion to GDP increasing from 67% in 2000 to 81% (2003 data).
4. Comprehensive national strength: The relative gap with the United States narrowed from 2.5 times to 2.2 times (2003 data).
5. Contribution and influence on global development: China's total import and export trade volume exceeded 1.42 trillion U.S. dollars, tripling that of 2000 and ranking third in the world.