What is China's disposable income?

Answer 1

January, 2008: The annual per capita disposable income of farmers in Shanghai exceeded 10,000 yuan (about 1,369 U.S. dollars) for the first time last year, according to information released from an enlarged meeting of the leading groupof Shanghai City on rural work. Present estimates of "middle class" in China range from 100 million to 247 million, depending on how much income renders one "middle class." Assuming that an income of about$9000 is necessary to be considered middle class, China could have over 600 million middle class citizens by 2015. The China State Information Center, by contrast, considers those earning 50,000 yuan ($6,227) per year to be middle class - and expects 25% of the populace to qualify by 2010. Of course, the level of affluence commanded by each tier depends on where the household is situated. For example, to be considered middle class in Shanghai, China's most expensive city, a family would need to have a higher income than if it were living inland in Chengdu or Chongqing. Roughly 13.5 percent of the China's population now belongs to the middle class.