The China Internet Information Center, a state-sponsored Chinese portal, has reported that China needs at least 100,000 English-Chinese translators to answer the growing demand for translation services. Also stated in the report, the Chinese University system is currently producing no more than 1,000 translators per year. But is this a fact, or merely a call to the Chinese education system to produce more translators for the benefit of the Chinese economy?
Prices of Chinese translation on the global market would indicate that there is no shortage of Chinese translators. If anything, they would indicate a surplus with supply exceeding the demand. The price per word for Simplified Chinese translation ranges in the area of US$0.04 to US$0.08 (wholesale price), which is on average 50% less than the price for Western European languages.
