Official stats: China's middle class 80m strong
19 June 2007
The number of Chinese officially described as "middle class" has risen by almost 15 million people in the last two years to 80 million in total, according to official sources. About 6.15% of the population were considered middle class, and the number was still rising, Hou Yunchun, director of the Research Office of the State Council, told a conference on wealth management, the Shanghai Securities News reported (in Chinese). Hou's estimate was based on criteria used by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which defines middle-income households as having an annual income between US$7,792 and US$65,790. A study by the NBS in January 2005 showed about 5.04% of Chinese, or 65.5 million people, fell into this category. Definitions of the China's middle class and its correct size have been a hotly debated topic among those researching it.
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