BEIJING - There were 7.089 million civil servants in China by the end of 2012, the State Administration of Civil Service revealed Thursday.

The number was up from 7.021 million by the end of 2011, according to a statement posted on the administration's official website.

China had 6.597 million civil servants in 2008, 6.789 million in 2009 and 6.894 million in 2010, according to the administration, which is affiliated to the country's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.

The ministry reported that 188,000 people were recruited as civil servants in 2012, with 18,000 working in central government organs and 170,000 in local regions.

About 1.12 million candidates took the national civil servant exam on November 25, 2012, marking a year-on-year increase of 150,000, it said.

One in every 53 examinees will successfully obtain a government post, according to the administration.