Shanghai had 836 centenarians at the end of 2008, up 78 during the year, a municipal meeting on work for senior citizens was told Tuesday.

That meant the city had six centenarians per 100,000 residents.

Since 2006, Shanghai's 60-plus population has grown at an annual pace of 100,000 on average.

China has 159 million people aged above 60, or more than 12 percent of the population. The number is expected to reach 174 million next year.

(Xinhua News Agency May 12, 2009)