People lined up to sit the civil service exam

The numbers making news around China during the week of November 26th, 2012

2,274
Number of kidnapped children reportedly recovered since April 2011 as part of a crackdown on criminal gangs involved in child abduction, according to the Ministry of Public Security. Shanghaiist

8 percent
Amount food consumption is expected to increase each year for the next five years in China. South China Morning Post

$387,000
Cost of a parking space in Hong Kong’s Repulse Bay. Bloomberg

13 percent
Proportion of China’s GDP last year that consisted of real estate investment. Financial Times

1.12 million
Number of people who sat in on the civil service examination this week - 20 times more than a decade ago. Of that number, only 20,800 will be hired by government. The Economist  

18 percent
Proportion of Japanese surveyed who have “amicable feelings toward China.” This is the lowest since the poll was first conducted in 1978. Wall Street Journal

1973.52
What the Shanghai Composite Index closed at on Wednesday – the lowest point in four years. Economic Observer

17
Number of helipads to be included on Changsha’s Sky City – the 220-story skyscraper that Broad Sustainable Building plans to construct in three months. The Times