Rotated empirical orthogonal function (REOF) analysis was applied in this study to daily precipitation from 1956 to 2015 collected at 512 China national weather stations. These daily precipitation data were extracted from the homogeneous precipitation dataset of China weather station. Seven climate divisions were identified based on the 512 stations data. The long-term annual average precipitation for each station and the average for all stations within each division were compared. The overall climate regimes of the individual stations within all the divisions are generally consistent. In South China, the linear precipitation trend and number trends of heavy rain and rainstorm during 1956-2015 were positive, while the trend of light sprinkle frequency reduced in the past 60 years. In North China, precipitation trend and number trends of light rain, heavy rain and rainstorm were negative. In the middle-lower reaches of the Yangtze River division (Northeast division), the linear precipitation trend and number trends of light rain, heavy rain and rainstorm during 1956-2015 were 0.0071 mm a^-1 (-0.0010 mm a^-1), -0.0729 d a^-1 (-0.0615 d a^-1), and 0.0132 d a^-1 (-0.0007 d a^-1), respectively. To the west of 100°E, precipitation trend and number trend of light-medium rain increased with no significant decrease in rainy days in the past 60 years. Characteristics of annual rainfall change on different time scales were analyzed using the PAUL (Morlet) wavelet analysis, the autocorrelation function, and power spectrum analysis method. The most significant variation of precipitation in China shows a periodic oscillation of 2-4 a. Based on National Centers for Environmental Prediction/National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) reanalysis data, wind fields at 500 hPa, 700 hPa, and 850 hPa were regressed on annual average daily precipitation in each division. Differences in moisture flux and moisture flux divergence between dry and wet years were analyzed and compared. Results indicate that the circulation patterns characterized by "east high and west low, south high and north low" between mainland China and the western Pacific in the surface were closely related to precipitation in each division. Moisture distribution was generally consistent with various circulation patterns.