China holds many "Number One" positions in the world.  As of 2009, it has foreign exchange reserve of more than US$2.1 trillion; its foreign trade reached US$2.2 trillion; its contribution to the growth of the global economy reached 19.2 percent; it has surpassed Japan to become the world’s largest market of luxury goods; its citizens produce and consume more gold than those in other countries.

As the world’s fastest growth economy, China makes more iron and steel, cement, coal, paper, agricultural products, consumer electronics, cars, and so on.  Its Haier brand refrigerators have 10.4 percent of the global market.  Chinese shipyards receive the most orders.

In the meantime, Chinese society has become more technologically sophisticated.  China has the most Internet users, the most registered Internet domain names, and has sold the most computers domestically.  It also leads the world in terms of registered trademarks.

While celebrating their impressive achievements, however, Chinese really should give a second thought to the unintended consequences associated with some of these Number Ones.

Depending upon coal as its main source of energy, China has emitted the world’s largest amount of greenhouse gases; it also has experienced the highest related loss of life.  In the first half of 2009, for example, 1,175 persons died in 749 coalmine accidents.

As car ownership has climbed, which has contributed to increasing energy consumption as well as pollution, China’s roadways, despite tremendous expansion, have become the world’s most congested.  On average, Chinese spend 42 minutes traveling each way to work.

China has the most human resources in science and technology.  It enrolls the most students at its universities and colleges.  But the unemployment rate among recent college graduates is probably the highest as a result of mismatches of skills and jobs.  On the other hand, relative to income, Chinese pay about three times more for higher education than Japanese, making Chinese higher education the most expensive in the world.

Chinese universities employ the largest number of professors.  But with only about 10 percent possessing a doctoral degree, these professors are probably the least qualified in terms of their educational attainment.

China operates the world’s largest telecommunications network, with the numbers of both fixed-line and mobile telephone users dwarfing those of other countries.  In 2009, the third-generation (3G) mobile communications finally took off, with three major mobile carriers running three different 3G standards.  The government’s promotion of TD−SCDMA, or the so-called indigenously developed technological standard, regardless of its commercial viability, has never been seen elsewhere.

Amid the global financial crisis, China’s stock market has had a record number of initial public offerings, accounting for half of the world’s total in 2009 in U.S. dollar terms.  However, the regulation regime has not been as vigorous, market manipulation has been widespread, and enforcement has not been tough, which may harbor crises in the future.

With the growing affluence of Chinese society, the improvement of people’s quality of life, and especially the introduction of a Western lifestyle, Chinese eat more and better but exercise less.  Consequently, China is thought to have edged ahead of India, becoming the country with the highest population of diabetes in the world.  This is not just alarming but will have negative social and economic impact in the years to come.

In a word, while Number Ones may be a promising sign, Chinese should not be obsessed with them as some of them may have pitfalls, whose implications have to be examined carefully.