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Compare Australia (2001) - China (2002)

Compare Australia (2001) z China (2002)

 Australia (2001)China (2002)
 AustraliaChina
Administrative divisions 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia 23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions* (zizhiqu, singular and plural), and 4 municipalities** (shi, singular and plural); Anhui, Beijing**, Chongqing**, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guangxi*, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei, Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol*, Ningxia*, Qinghai, Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanghai**, Shanxi, Sichuan, Tianjin**, Xinjiang*, Xizang* (Tibet), Yunnan, Zhejiang; note - China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau
Age structure 0-14 years:
20.64% (male 2,045,892; female 1,948,949)

15-64 years:
66.86% (male 6,538,096; female 6,405,014)

65 years and over:
12.5% (male 1,059,107; female 1,360,536) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 24.3% (male 163,821,081; female 148,855,387)


15-64 years: 68.4% (male 452,354,428; female 426,055,713)


65 years and over: 7.3% (male 43,834,528; female 49,382,568) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry rice, wheat, potatoes, sorghum, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, cotton, oilseed; pork; fish
Airports 411 (2000 est.) 489 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total:
271

over 3,047 m:
10

2,438 to 3,047 m:
12

1,524 to 2,437 m:
118

914 to 1,523 m:
122

under 914 m:
9 (2000 est.)
total: 324


over 3,047 m: 27


2,438 to 3,047 m: 88


1,524 to 2,437 m: 147


914 to 1,523 m: 30


under 914 m: 32 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
140

1,524 to 2,437 m:
17

914 to 1,523 m:
112

under 914 m:
11 (2000 est.)
total: 165


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 29


914 to 1,523 m: 56


under 914 m: 78 (2002)
Area total:
7,686,850 sq km

land:
7,617,930 sq km

water:
68,920 sq km

note:
includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
total: 9,596,960 sq km


land: 9,326,410 sq km


water: 270,550 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than the contiguous 48 states of the US slightly smaller than the US
Background Australia became a commonwealth of the British Empire in 1901. It was able to take advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. A referendum to change Australia's status, from a commonwealth headed by the British monarch to an independent republic, was defeated in 1999. For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences. But in the 19th and early 20th centuries, China was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established a dictatorship that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, his successor DENG Xiaoping gradually introduced market-oriented reforms and decentralized economic decision making, and output quadrupled by 2000. Political controls remain tight even while economic controls continue to be relaxed.
Birth rate 12.86 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 15.85 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues:
$94 billion

expenditures:
$103 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)
revenues: $161.8 billion


expenditures: $191.8 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000)
Capital Canberra Beijing
Climate generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north
Coastline 25,760 km 14,500 km
Constitution 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901 most recent promulgation 4 December 1982
Country name conventional long form:
Commonwealth of Australia

conventional short form:
Australia
conventional long form: People's Republic of China


conventional short form: China


local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo


local short form: Zhong Guo


abbreviation: PRC
Currency Australian dollar (AUD) yuan (CNY)
Death rate 7.18 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 6.77 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $220.6 billion (2000) $149.4 billion (2002 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Edward W. GNEHM, Jr.

embassy:
Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600

mailing address:
APO AP 96549

telephone:
[61] (02) 6214-5600

FAX:
[61] (02) 6214-5970

consulate(s) general:
Sydney

consulate(s):
Melbourne and Perth
chief of mission: Ambassador Clark T. RANDT, Jr.


embassy: Xiu Shui Bei Jie 3, 100600 Beijing


mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002


telephone: [86] (10) 6532-3431


FAX: [86] (10) 6532-6929


consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Shenyang
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Michael THAWLEY

chancery:
1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036

telephone:
[1] (202) 797-3000

FAX:
[1] (202) 797-3168

consulate(s) general:
Atlanta, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
chief of mission: Ambassador YANG Jiechi


chancery: 2300 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 328-2500


FAX: [1] (202) 328-2582


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
Disputes - international territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian Antarctic Territory) in 2000, China joined ASEAN discussions towards creating a South China Sea "code of conduct" - a non-legally binding, confidence-building measure; much of the rugged, militarized boundary with India is in dispute, but talks to resolve the least contested middle sector resumed in 2001; ongoing talks with Tajikistan have failed to resolve the longstanding dispute over the indefinite boundary; Kazakhstan is working rapidly with China to delimit its large open borders to control population migration, illegal activities, and trade; 2001 Treaty of Good Neighborliness, Friendship, and Cooperation commits Russia and China to seek peaceable unanimity over disputed alluvial islands at the confluence of the Amur and Ussuri rivers and a small island on the Argun; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands with Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei; maritime boundary agreement with Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin awaits ratification; Paracel Islands occupied by China, but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; claims Japanese-administered Senkaku-shoto (Senkaku Islands/Diaoyu Tai), as does Taiwan; demarcation of the land boundary with Vietnam has commenced, but details of the alignment have not been made public; 33-km section of boundary with North Korea in the Paektu-san (mountain) area is indefinite
Economic aid - donor ODA, $1.43 billion (FY97/98) -
Economic aid - recipient - $NA
Economy - overview Australia has a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four dominant West European economies. Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big impact on the economy. The government is pushing for increased exports of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets continues to be severe. While Australia has suffered from the low growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the early 1990s and during the recent financial problems in East Asia, the economy has expanded at a solid 4% annual growth pace in the last five years. Canberra's emphasis on reforms is a key factor behind the economy's resilience to the regional crisis and its stronger than expected growth rate. Growth in 2001 will depend on key international commodity prices, the extent of recovery in nearby Asian economies, and the strength of US and European markets. In late 1978 the Chinese leadership began moving the economy from a sluggish Soviet-style centrally planned economy to a more market-oriented system. Whereas the system operates within a political framework of strict Communist control, the economic influence of non-state organizations and individual citizens has been steadily increasing. The authorities have switched to a system of household and village responsibility in agriculture in place of the old collectivization, increased the authority of local officials and plant managers in industry, permitted a wide variety of small-scale enterprise in services and light manufacturing, and opened the economy to increased foreign trade and investment. The result has been a quadrupling of GDP since 1978. In 2002, with its 1.28 billion people but a GDP of just $4,600 per capita, China stood as the second largest economy in the world after the US (measured on a purchasing power parity basis). Agriculture and industry have posted major gains, especially in coastal areas near Hong Kong and opposite Taiwan, where foreign investment has helped spur output of both domestic and export goods. On the darker side, the leadership has often experienced in its hybrid system the worst results of socialism (bureaucracy and lassitude) and of capitalism (windfall gains and growing income disparities). Beijing thus has periodically backtracked, retightening central controls at intervals. The government has struggled to (a) collect revenues due from provinces, businesses, and individuals; (b) reduce corruption and other economic crimes; and (c) keep afloat the large state-owned enterprises many of which had been shielded from competition by subsidies and had been losing the ability to pay full wages and pensions. From 80 to 120 million surplus rural workers are adrift between the villages and the cities, many subsisting through part-time low-paying jobs. Popular resistance, changes in central policy, and loss of authority by rural cadres have weakened China's population control program, which is essential to maintaining long-term growth in living standards. Another long-term threat to growth is the deterioration in the environment, notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the steady fall of the water table especially in the north. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic development. Beijing will intensify efforts to stimulate growth through spending on infrastructure - such as water control and power grids - and poverty relief and through rural tax reform aimed at eliminating arbitrary local levies on farmers. Access to the World Trade Organization strengthens China's ability to maintain sturdy growth rates, and at the same time puts additional pressure on the hybrid system of strong political controls and growing market influences. Although Beijing has claimed 7%-8% annual growth in recent years, many observers believe the rate, while strong, is more like 5%.
Electricity - consumption 178.306 billion kWh (1999) 1.206 trillion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (1999) 10.25 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (1999) 400 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 191.727 billion kWh (1999) 1.308 trillion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
89.93%

hydro:
8.36%

nuclear:
0%

other:
1.71% (1999)
fossil fuel: 82%


hydro: 17%


nuclear: 1%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Lake Eyre -15 m

highest point:
Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
lowest point: Turpan Pendi -154 m


highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
Environment - current issues soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on coal, produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development; desertification; trade in endangered species
Environment - international agreements party to:
Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling

signed, but not ratified:
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1% Han Chinese 91.9%, Zhuang, Uygur, Hui, Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Manchu, Mongol, Buyi, Korean, and other nationalities 8.1%
Exchange rates Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.7995 (January 2001), 1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996) yuan per US dollar - 8.2767 (January 2002), 8.2771 (2001), 8.2785 (2000), 8.2783 (1999), 8.2790 (1998), 8.2898 (1997)
Executive branch chief of state:
Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Rev. Peter HOLLINGSWORTH (since 29 June 2001)

head of government:
Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since NA)

cabinet:
Cabinet selected from among the members of Federal Parliament by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister

elections:
none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general for a three-year term

note:
government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party
chief of state: President Hu Jintao (since 15 March 2003) and Vice President ZENG Qinghong (since 15 March 2003)


head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003); Vice Premiers QIAN Qichen (since 29 March 1993), LI Lanqing (29 March 1993), WU Bangguo (since 17 March 1995), and WEN Jiabao (since 18 March 1998)


cabinet: State Council appointed by the National People's Congress (NPC)


elections: president and vice president elected by the National People's Congress for five-year terms; elections last held 16-18 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); premier nominated by the president, confirmed by the National People's Congress


election results: JIANG Zemin reelected president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,882 votes (36 delegates voted against him, 29 abstained, and 32 did not vote); HU Jintao elected vice president by the Ninth National People's Congress with a total of 2,841 votes (67 delegates voted against him, 39 abstained, and 32 did not vote)
Exports $69 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $312.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment machinery and equipment; textiles and clothing, footwear, toys and sporting goods; mineral fuels
Exports - partners Japan 19%, EU 14%, ASEAN 12%, US 9%, South Korea, NZ, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China (1999) US 20.4%, Hong Kong 17.5%, Japan 16.9%, South Korea 4.7%, Germany 3.7%, Netherlands 2.7%, UK 2.6%, Singapore 2.2%, Taiwan (2001)
Fiscal year 1 July - 30 June calendar year
Flag description blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper hoist-side corner
GDP purchasing power parity - $445.8 billion (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $6 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
3%

industry:
26%

services:
71% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 18%


industry: 49%


services: 33% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $23,200 (2000 est.) purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 4.7% (2000 est.) 8% (official estimate) (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 27 00 S, 133 00 E 35 00 N, 105 00 E
Geography - note world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer world's fourth-largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US); Mount Everest on the border with Nepal, is the world's tallest peak; soybean, one of the oldest of cultivated crops, is believed to have originated in China
Highways total:
913,000 km

paved:
353,331 km (including 1,363 km of expressways)

unpaved:
559,669 km (1996)
total: 1.4 million km


paved: 271,300 km (with at least 16,000 km of expressways)


unpaved: 1,128,700 km (1999)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
2%

highest 10%:
25.4% (1994)
lowest 10%: 2%


highest 10%: 30% (1998)
Illicit drugs Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle; growing domestic drug abuse problem; source country for chemical precursors and methamphetamine
Imports $77 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) $268.6 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, plastics, iron and steel, chemicals
Imports - partners EU 24%, US 22%, Japan 14%, ASEAN 13% (1999) Japan 17.6%, Taiwan 11.2%, US 10.8%, South Korea 9.6%, Germany 5.7%, Hong Kong 3.9%, Russia 3.3%, Malaysia 2.5% (2001)
Independence 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies) 221 BC (unification under the Qin or Ch'in Dynasty 221 BC; Qing or Ch'ing Dynasty replaced by the Republic on 12 February 1912; People's Republic established 1 October 1949)
Industrial production growth rate 1.5% (1999 est.) 13.5% (2002 est.)
Industries mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel iron and steel, coal, machine building, armaments, textiles and apparel, petroleum, cement, chemical fertilizers, footwear, toys, food processing, automobiles, consumer electronics, telecommunications
Infant mortality rate 4.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) 27.25 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.4% (2000 est.) -0.8% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ANZUS, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMEE, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, CCC, CDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (observer), OPCW, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMOVIC, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 264 (2000) 3 (2000)
Irrigated land 21,070 sq km (1993 est.) 525,800 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general) Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress); Local Peoples Courts (comprise higher, intermediate and local courts); Special Peoples Courts (primarily military, maritime, and railway transport courts)
Labor force 9.5 million (December 1999) 706 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation services 73%, industry 22%, agriculture 5% (1997 est.) agriculture 50%, industry 23%, services 27% (2001 est.)
Land boundaries 0 km total: 22,147.34 km


border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, Hong Kong 30 km, India 3,380 km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km, Macau 0.34 km, Mongolia 4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km, Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km
Land use arable land:
6%

permanent crops:
0%

permanent pastures:
54%

forests and woodland:
19%

other:
21% (1993 est.)
arable land: 13.31%


permanent crops: 1.2%


other: 85.49% (1998 est.)
Languages English, native languages Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue (Cantonese), Wu (Shanghaiese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese), Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
Legal system based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations a complex amalgam of custom and statute, largely criminal law; rudimentary civil code in effect since 1 January 1987; new legal codes in effect since 1 January 1980; continuing efforts are being made to improve civil, administrative, criminal, and commercial law
Legislative branch bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two territories; one-half of the members elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (148 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve three-year terms; no state can have fewer than five representatives)

elections:
Senate - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001); House of Representatives - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001)

election results:
Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 35, Australian Labor Party 29, Australian Democratic Party 9, Green Party 1, One Nation Party 1, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 80, Australian Labor Party 67, independent 1
unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,979 seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's congresses to serve five-year terms)


elections: last held NA December 1997-NA February 1998 (next to be held late 2002-NA March 2003)


election results: percent of vote - NA%; seats - NA
Life expectancy at birth total population:
79.87 years

male:
77.02 years

female:
82.87 years (2001 est.)
total population: 71.86 years


male: 70.02 years


female: 73.86 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
100%

male:
100%

female:
100% (1980 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 81.5%


male: 89.9%


female: 72.7% (1995 est.)
Location Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam
Map references Oceania Asia
Maritime claims contiguous zone:
24 NM

continental shelf:
200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin

exclusive economic zone:
200 NM

territorial sea:
12 NM
contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin


territorial sea: 12 NM


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Merchant marine total:
54 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,558,371 GRT/2,038,776 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 26, cargo 3, chemical tanker 5, container 1, liquefied gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 7, roll on/roll off 6 (2000 est.)
total: 1,764 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 16,915,047 GRT/25,366,296 DWT


ships by type: barge carrier 2, bulk 328, cargo 822, chemical tanker 25, combination bulk 10, combination ore/oil 1, container 134, liquefied gas 26, multi-functional large-load carrier 6, passenger 7, passenger/cargo 45, petroleum tanker 263, refrigerated cargo 26, roll on/roll off 23, short-sea passenger 42, specialized tanker 3, vehicle carrier 1


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Croatia 1, Germany 1, Hong Kong 16, Japan 2, Panama 2, South Korea 1, Spain 1, Taiwan 9, Tanzania 1, Turkey 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force People's Liberation Army (PLA): comprises ground forces, Navy (including naval infantry and naval aviation), Air Force, and II Artillery Corps (strategic missile force), People's Armed Police Force (internal security troops, nominally a state security body but included by the Chinese as part of the "armed forces" and considered to be an adjunct to the PLA), militia
Military expenditures - dollar figure $6.9 billion (FY98/99) $20.048 billion (2002); note - this is the officially announced figure, but actual defense spending more likely ranges from $45 billion to $65 billion for 2002
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1.9% (FY98/99) 1.6% (2002); note - this is the officially announced figure, but actual defense spending is more likely between 3.5% to 5.0% of GDP for 2002
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
4,990,107 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 370,087,489 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
4,303,966 (2001 est.)
males age 15-49: 203,003,036 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age 17 years of age 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
138,971 (2001 est.)
males: 10,089,458 (2002 est.)
National holiday Australia Day, 26 January (1788) Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949)
Nationality noun:
Australian(s)

adjective:
Australian
noun: Chinese (singular and plural)


adjective: Chinese
Natural hazards cyclones along the coast; severe droughts frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts); damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts; land subsidence
Natural resources bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony, manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium, hydropower potential (world's largest)
Net migration rate 4.19 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) -0.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 2,500 km; petroleum products 500 km; natural gas 5,600 km crude oil 9,070 km; petroleum products 560 km; natural gas 9,383 km (1998)
Political parties and leaders Australian Democratic Party [Meg LEES]; Australian Labor Party [Kim BEAZLEY]; Green Party [Bob BROWN]; Liberal Party [John Winston HOWARD]; National Party [John ANDERSON]; One Nation Party [Pauline HANSON] Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao, General Secretary of the Central Committee]; eight registered small parties controlled by CCP
Political pressure groups and leaders Australian Democratic Labor Party (anti-Communist Labor Party splinter group); Peace and Nuclear Disarmament Action (Nuclear Disarmament Party splinter group) no substantial political opposition groups exist, although the government has identified the Falungong sect and the China Democracy Party as potential rivals
Population 19,357,594 (July 2001 est.) 1,284,303,705 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line NA% 10% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate 0.99% (2001 est.) 0.87% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport (Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart (Tasmania), Launceston (Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville Dalian, Fuzhou, Guangzhou, Haikou, Huangpu, Lianyungang, Nanjing, Nantong, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shantou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Wenzhou, Xiamen, Xingang, Yantai, Zhanjiang (2001)
Radio broadcast stations AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998)
Radios 25.5 million (1997) 417 million (1997)
Railways total:
33,819 km (2,540 km electrified)

broad gauge:
3,719 km 1.600-m gauge

standard gauge:
15,422 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:
14,506 km 1.067-m gauge

dual gauge:
172 km NA gauges (1999)
total: 67,524 km (including 5,400 km of provincial "local" rails)


standard gauge: 63,924 km 1.435-m gauge (13,362 km electrified; 20,250 km double-track)


narrow gauge: 3,600 km 0.750-m and 1.000-m gauge local industrial lines (1999 est.)
Religions Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%, non-Christian 11% Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Muslim 1%-2%, Christian 3%-4%


note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
Sex ratio at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.78 male(s)/female

total population:
0.99 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.89 male(s)/female


total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal and compulsory 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
excellent domestic and international service

domestic:
domestic satellite system; much use of radiotelephone in areas of low population density; rapid growth of mobile cellular telephones

international:
submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions) (1998)
general assessment: domestic and international services are increasingly available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal cities, industrial centers, and many towns


domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems have been installed; a domestic satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place


international: satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region) and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); several international fiber-optic links to Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong, Russia, and Germany (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use 9.58 million (1998) 135 million (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 6.4 million (1998) 65 million (January 2001)
Television broadcast stations 104 (1997) 3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial TV stations and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997)
Terrain mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in east
Total fertility rate 1.77 children born/woman (2001 est.) 1.82 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 6.4% (2000) urban unemployment roughly 10%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas (2002 est.)
Waterways 8,368 km (mainly used by small, shallow-draft craft) 110,000 km (1999)
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