The population of Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, is approaching 12 million, said an official with the city's Communist Party of China (CPC) committee on Monday.

Zhu Xiaodan, secretary of the CPC city committee, announced that the migrant and permanent population in Guangzhou almost hit 12 million last year, making it the eighth largest city in the country.

Zhu warned this economically booming city can accommodate no more than 15 million people.

Statistics show that 66,410 babies were born to permanent residence while 79,812 babies were born to migrant workers last year. Zhu noted that the city's population is expected to grow steadily, putting increased pressure on its resources, environment, social and economic development.

The largest cities in China include Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing and Tianjin, all of which are independent administrative regions not connected to provinces.

(Xinhua News Agency February 13, 2007)