HeBei is located in the north of China.It makes up a portion of the Huabei Pingyuan(North China Plain).The good temperature is fit for wheat and cotton as its principal crops.In the north and the south important coal is deposited,so are manufactures developing.Southern sections of the province developed as the economic heartland of ancient China in the 2nd century BC.Beijing is in the north of HeBei and serves as the national capital,to the economic benefit of the surrounding areas.Area,188,000 sq km;population,67,440,000(2000).Shijiazhuang is the capital of HeBei Province,commercial,transportation and industrial center.Handan,also a transportation and industrial center;Tangshan,heavy industrial center.