Since 1950, China Pictorial has served China and the world as a comprehensive publication blending captivating imagery with insightful articles, under the direction of the Information Office of China's State Council and the China International Publishing Group. The now-familiar title lettering still gracing the cover was inscribed by the late Chairman Mao Zedong.

Over the last six decades, China Pictorial has been unwavering in its mission to vividly and faithfully present and document the dramatic progress China has seen amidst rapid developments in politics, culture, lifestyle, and a variety of topics related to the country's rich history and latest news. Published in Chinese as well as several foreign languages, the monthly magazine is not only distributed throughout China, covering all provinces, municipalities, autonomous regions, and the Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, but also finds readers in more than 100 countries around the globe.

Today, China Pictorial Publications is under constant expansion and diversification of its operations. In addition to the print Chinese and English editions of China Pictorial, the media organization also produces print versions of other periodicals such as the Russian and Korean editions of China, the Chinese-language Fashion and Beauty (in cooperation with Condé Nast's Vogue), and Japanese-language China View (in cooperation with Japan-based Iskra Industry Co., Ltd.), as well as online editions of China Pictorial in Chinese, English, French, Russian, Korean, German, Italian, Japanese, and Arabic. To conveniently share the magazine's rich photographic resources with the rest of the world, the publishing unit established a large online photo bank (chinafotobank.com) at the end of 2008.

(China Development Gateway February 26, 2010)