The country's top think tank has predicted China will be the world's most powerful nation, second only to the United States, by the year 2050.
China will also strive to be among the top five most competitive countries of the G20 by 2020, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) said in its Report on National Competitiveness of China, which was released on Monday.
The country has remained among the top five powerful nations with regard to economic growth since 1992 and is expected to overtake the United States to become the world's largest economy by 2030, the report said.
According to data for the first half of this year, China has eclipsed Japan to become the world's second-biggest economy after three decades of blistering growth.
China ranked 17th in national competitiveness among 100 countries in 2008, a jump of 56 places from its previous listing in 1990, according to the report.
Ni Pengfei, director of the Research Center for City and Competitiveness under the CASS, at a press conference in Beijing, said: "China's comprehensive competitiveness has rapidly climbed up the rank over the past 20 years, but we are worried about its competitiveness with regard to efficiency and industrial structure.
"We need to foster new growth areas in a bid to prevent unsustainable development caused by the extensive economic growth pattern."
The report also warned that China's core competitiveness could not match its ranking when it comes to high-level talents, culture, education, health, science and technology.
For example, China's index of high-level talents stands at 8.3 percent of that of the US and 10 percent of that of Japan, clearly indicating a big gap in the human resources sector, the report said.
Questions:
1. In what year will China be the 2nd most powerful nation?
2. Where does China rank in the national competitiveness tables?
3. What is China’s index on high level talents?
Answers:
1. 2050
2. 17th
3. 8.3 percent of that of the US.
(中国日报网英语点津 Helen 编辑)
About the broadcaster:
Lee Hannon is Chief Editor at China Daily with 15-years experience in print and broadcast journalism. Born in England, Lee has traveled extensively around the world as a journalist including four years as a senior editor in Los Angeles. He now lives in Beijing and is happy to move to China and join the China Daily team.