Benxi 本溪
—  Prefecture-level city  —
本溪市
File:Benxi centre.png
Location of Benxi in Liaoning
Coordinates: 41°18′N 123°46′E / 41.3°N 123.767°E / 41.3; 123.767Coordinates: 41°18′N 123°46′E / 41.3°N 123.767°E / 41.3; 123.767
Country	People's Republic of China
Province	Liaoning
Districts and Counties	List Pingshan District Xihu District Mingshan District Nanfen District Benxi Manchu Autonomous County Huanren Manchu Autonomous County
Government
• CPC Benxi	Committee Secretary
• Mayor	Gang Rui
Area
• Prefecture-level city	8,411 km2 (3,248 sq mi)
• Urban	747 km2 (288 sq mi)
Elevation	131 m (430 ft)
Population (2010 census)[1]
• Prefecture-level city	1,709,538
• Urban	959,610
Time zone	China Standard (UTC+8)
Area code(s)	414
Website	http://www.benxi.gov.cn/en

This article contains Chinese text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of Chinese characters.

Benxi (Chinese: 本溪; pinyin: Běnxī) is a prefecture-level city located in the east of Liaoning province in Northeast China, south-southeast of Shenyang. Its population is 1,709,538 at the 2010 census whom 959,610 in the built up area It was founded as a metallurgical center in 1915. Benxi Iron and Steel Company ("Bengang") is the largest employer in the city, and used to be the 4th largest steel company in China. The second largest industry in Benxi is coal mining. Benxi has pollution problems due to steel production and coal mining.

The worst coal mining disaster in the world took place on April 26, 1942 in Benxihu Colliery. A coal-dust explosion killed 1,549 miners working that day.

During the disaster of Air France flight AF447, Benxi Iron and Steel Company lost 5 employees, including the executive Chen Chiping who was the wife of Liaoning's provincial governor.^[2]

Administrative divisions[link]

Benxi contains 4 districts and 2 autonomous counties for the Manchu nation:

Map
#	Name	Hanzi	Hanyu Pinyin	Population (2003 est.)	Area (km²)	Density (/km²)
1	Pingshan District	平山区	Píngshān Qū	350,000	177	1,977
2	Xihu District	溪湖区	Xīhú Qū	220,000	320	688
3	Mingshan District	明山区	Míngshān Qū	300,000	410	732
4	Nanfen District	南芬区	Nánfēn Qū	80,000	619	129
5	Benxi Manchu Autonomous County	本溪满族 自治县	Běnxī Mǎnzú Zìzhìxiàn	300,000	3,362	89
6	Huanren Manchu Autonomous County	桓仁满族 自治县	Huánrén Mǎnzú Zìzhìxiàn	300,000	3,547	85

Within these there are 25 counties, 40 villages and towns, 229 communities and 289 village committees.

Geography[link]

Benxi is located at latitude 40° 49’—41° 35’ N and longitude 123° 34’—125° 46’ E, and has a total area of 8,411.31 square kilometres (3,247.62 sq mi). To the east is Jilin City, Jilin Province, to the south is Dandong, to the southwest is Anshan (though the two don't actually border each other), to the west is Liaoyang, to the northwest is Shenyang, and to the north is Fushun. The area has many mountains as well as great forest coverage (74%).

Climate[link]

Benxi has a monsoon-influenced humid continental climate (Koppen Dwa), characterised by hot, humid summers, due to the East Asian monsoon, and long, cold and windy, but dry winters, due to the Siberian anticyclone. The four seasons in Benxi are distinctive. Nearly half of the annual rainfall occurs in July and August. Monthly mean temperatures range from −11.5 °C (11.3 °F) in January to 24.0 °C (75.2 °F) in July, for an annual average of 7.8 °C (46.0 °F).

Economy[link]

Benxi’s economy grew 26% in 2008 to a regional GDP of 61.1 billion CNY. Urban per-capita disposable income was 13,300 CNY (1,913 USD), and consumption per capita 10,167 CNY (1,462 USD).

With 46 large and medium-sized enterprises in Benxi, main industrial products are raw iron (14 million tons), steel (13 million tons), finished steel (12 million tons), cement (3 million tons) and raw coal (1 million tons). In 2008, 92,615 people were employed in manufacturing, 20,368 in education, 19,228 in public administration and social organizations, 17,913 persons in the mining industry, and 12,997 in transportation and storage. According to the type of business ownership, 63,000 were employed in private companies.^[3]

Uranium is mined in the region.

Asia's biggest iron ore mine, which is reported to possess more than 3 billion tons of proven reserves, has recently been found in this region.[1]

Tourist Activities[link]

The Benxi Water Cave National Park.

A river 3,000 meters long, 2 meters deep and wide enough for 20-30 boats, is found flowing through this cave 35 km from downtown Benxi. The cave is also filled with countless stalactites and stone flowers, pillars and curtains.

References[link]

1. ^ bxgk
2. ^ "AF447 victim". www.terra.com.br. http://noticias.terra.com.br/brasil/vooaf447/interna/0,,OI3799058-EI13960,00-Pelo+menos+nomes+do+voo+AF+sao+conhecidos.html. Retrieved 4 June 2009. 
3. ^ China Liaoning Business Guide

External links[link]

• Benxi Municipal People's Government official website
• Benxi Man Autonomous County official website