A translation crisis is brewing in China

Official reports say China lacks qualified translators from Chinese into foreign languages.

At a forum on the issue on Friday, the head of the State Council Information Office said the shortage of professional translators was one factor hindering the country’s international ties.

China’s first translation forum, called "A Bridge to the World", was organized by the China International Publishing Group and the Translators Association of China.
Besides the translator shortage, the forum discussed industry development and price competition. The president of the International Federation of Translators noted that translation was one of the world’s largest industries, with annual revenue of US$13–14 billion.
Lin Wusun, chief translator at the China International Publishing Group and executive vice-president of the Translators Association of China, said the country accounted for about 10% of the global translation market. Some 60,000 professional translators work in the field, a very small number for a country like China.
Around 3,000 translation companies are currently registered in China. If sufficient attention continues to be paid to the problem, this number will soon triple.