China's Shanghai Expo 2010 – by the numbers
China calls the Shanghai World Expo its 'Economic Olympics.' It is expected to attract 70 million visitors and cost $55 million. And yes, China has the biggest pavilion.
The China Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo site in Shanghai, in this March 21 file photo. Shanghai unveils to the world on Friday its multi-billion dollar Expo.
Reuters
Dubai
With its Shanghai World Expo opening Friday, China is unveiling its second mega-global gathering in two years – as well as another set of world record-breaking figures.
Here’s a by-the-numbers look at what China is calling its “Economic Olympics.”
China beckons
Expected visitors: 70 million
Population of Shanghai: 20 million
Countries participating: 191
Countries in the world: 191-195, depending how you count
Total groups participating: 246
Height of Chinese pavilion: 207 feet
Height of the next tallest pavilion: 69 feet
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IN PICTURES: Shanghai World Expo 2010
Breaking new ground
Size of Expo grounds: 5.3 square kilometers (2 square miles)
Times the previous Expo, held in Spain in 2008, could fit into the Shanghai Expo grounds: 20
Soccer fields that could fit inside the expo grounds: 1,000
Households bulldozed to make way for the site: 18,000
Days the Expo will last: 184
Live shows planned: 20,000
Length of fireworks show at opening ceremony Friday: 30 minutes
Investment: priceless
Estimated cost (in media reports): $55 billion
Estimated cost of Beijing Olympics: $40 billion
Official estimated cost of Expo: $4.2 billion
Official amount spent on upgrading Shanghai’s infrastructure: $45 billion
Percentage of visitors expected to come from within China: 95
Cost of one ticket: 160 yuan ($24)
Average disposable income per month in China: 1,430 yuan ($210)
Losses from 1986 Expo in Vancouver, Canada: $33 million
Losses from 2000 Expo in Hanover, Germany: $1.1 billion
Profit from 2010 Expo that Shanghai officials say they expect: $0
Crowd control
Volunteers helping inside the expo: 72,000
Volunteers placed around the city: 100,000
‘Civic volunteers’ also recruited to help: 2 million
People detained by police in a pre-Expo crackdown: 6,000
People sent for reeducation through labor for Expo-related reasons this year: 10
People detained or placed under house arrest: dozens
Sources: China Daily, Financial Times, Earth Times, Guardian, Reuters, Telegraph, worldatlas.com, Xinhua
IN PICTURES: Shanghai World Expo 2010
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