Social Problems  POPULATION! – 1.3 billion people  Imbalance of wealth between rich and poor  Urbanization  62% of population lives in rural areas now but in 2035 it is predicted that 70% will live in urban areas  Aging Nation  Currently 10% of population considered elderly  2050 – median age in China will be 45

Environmental Problems  Air Pollution  According to the EPA Air Quality Scale, any pollution rating above 300 means air is unsafe to breathe.  January 2013 – 19 days above 300 (Beijing)  January 12, 2013 – Air quality reached 886 (Beijing)  Water Pollution  January 2013 – a chemical accident leaked benzene, a known cancer-causing agent, into a tributary of the Huangpu River  More than half of China’s surface water is so polluted that it cannot be treated to make drinkable

Environmental Problems  Desertification  Permanent destruction of forests in order to make the land available for other uses  ¼ of China’s total land surface is under desertification  “Cancer Villages”  Entire towns that have been written off as so polluted that simply living there is a cancer risk

China in the Global Economy  China is the largest holder of U.S. public debt  World’s second largest economy (behind U.S.)  One of the world’s fastest-growing major economies  World’s largest exporter and importer of goods