Based on the 1% Population Survey of China in 2005,we examine the size and distribution of floating population in the context of regional competition.We found that the size of short-term labor migrants is not negligible,amounted to nearly 17 million,which accounted for 2% to 3% of the total population in the coastal regions.Totally 150 million migrants left their place of registration,mainly inter-provincial in the coastal regions and largely intra-provincial in the interior.Among seventy million interprovincial ones,three-fourth were originated from nine sending provinces in the interior and about three-fourth headed to Guangdong(34.2%),Yangzi-River-Delta Region(28.5%)and the Regions surrounding the Bohai Bay(13%).The destination choice between Guangdong and YRD region is mainly affected by distances to the two regions,being highly concentrated for a neighboring province but spread for distant ones.The above results reflect a strong magnet force of the growth poles on people in the interior as well as increasing regional competition for labor,which helps to explain the labor shortage in despite of massive labor migrations.