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Compare Iceland (2004) - Pacific Ocean (2002)
Compare Iceland (2004) z Pacific Ocean (2002)
| Iceland (2004) | Pacific Ocean (2002) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | 8 regions; Austurland, Hofudhborgarsvaedhi, Nordhurland Eystra, Nordhurland Vestra, Sudhurland, Sudhurnes, Vestfirdhir, Vesturland | - |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.5% (male 33,522; female 32,489)
15-64 years: 65.8% (male 98,091; female 95,450) 65 years and over: 11.7% (male 15,552; female 18,862) (2004 est.) |
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| Agriculture - products | potatoes, green vegetables, mutton, dairy products, fish | - |
| Airports | 100 (2003 est.) | - |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 5
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
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| Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 93
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 29 under 914 m: 61 (2004 est.) |
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| Area | total: 103,000 sq km
land: 100,250 sq km water: 2,750 sq km |
total: 155.557 million sq km
note: includes Bali Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Flores Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of Tonkin, Java Sea, Philippine Sea, Savu Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, Timor Sea, and other tributary water bodies |
| Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Kentucky | about 15 times the size of the US; covers about 28% of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world |
| Background | Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Limited home rule from Denmark was granted in 1874 and complete independence attained in 1944. Literacy, longevity, income, and social cohesion are first-rate by world standards. | The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the world's five oceans (followed by the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean). Strategically important access waterways include the La Perouse, Tsugaru, Tsushima, Taiwan, Singapore, and Torres Straits. The decision by the International Hydrographic Organization in the spring of 2000 to delimit a fifth ocean, the Southern Ocean, removed the portion of the Pacific Ocean south of 60 degrees south. |
| Birth rate | 13.83 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
| Budget | revenues: $4.205 billion
expenditures: $4.405 billion, including capital expenditures of $467 million (2003) |
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| Capital | Reykjavik | - |
| Climate | temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers | planetary air pressure systems and resultant wind patterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; trade winds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified by seasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and Central America; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be much less pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the same latitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific is monsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, when moisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dry season during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asian landmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strike southeast and east Asia from May to December |
| Coastline | 4,988 km | 135,663 km |
| Constitution | 16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944 | - |
| Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Iceland
conventional short form: Iceland local long form: Lydhveldidh Island local short form: Island |
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| Currency | Icelandic krona (ISK) | - |
| Death rate | 6.57 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
| Debt - external | $2.6 billion (1999) | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador James I. GADSDEN
embassy: Laufasvegur 21, 101 Reykjavik mailing address: US Embassy, PSC 1003, Box 40, FPO AE 09728-0340 telephone: [354] 562-9100 FAX: [354] 562-9118 |
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| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Helgi AGUSTSSON
chancery: Suite 1200, 1156 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005-1704 telephone: [1] (202) 265-6653 FAX: [1] (202) 265-6656 consulate(s) general: New York |
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| Disputes - international | Rockall continental shelf dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area) remains dormant; dispute with Denmark over the Faroe Islands' fisheries median line boundary within 200 nm; disputes with Denmark, the UK, and Ireland over the Faroe Islands continental shelf boundary outside 200 nm | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) |
| Economic aid - donor | NA | - |
| Economy - overview | Iceland's Scandinavian-type economy is basically capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system (including generous housing subsidies), low unemployment, and remarkably even distribution of income. In the absence of other natural resources (except for abundant geothermal power), the economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, which provides 70% of export earnings and employs 12% of the work force. The economy remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to fluctuations in world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum, and ferrosilicon. Government policies include reducing the budget and current account deficits, limiting foreign borrowing, containing inflation, revising agricultural and fishing policies, diversifying the economy, and privatizing state-owned industries. The government remains opposed to EU membership, primarily because of Icelanders' concern about losing control over their fishing resources. Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and service industries in the last decade, and new developments in software production, biotechnology, and financial services are taking place. The tourism sector is also expanding, with the recent trends in ecotourism and whale watching. Growth had been remarkably steady in 1996-2001 at 3%-5%, but could not be sustained in 2002 in an environment of global recession. Growth resumed in 2003, and inflation dropped back from 5% to 2%. | The Pacific Ocean is a major contributor to the world economy and particularly to those nations its waters directly touch. It provides low-cost sea transportation between East and West, extensive fishing grounds, offshore oil and gas fields, minerals, and sand and gravel for the construction industry. In 1996, over 60% of the world's fish catch came from the Pacific Ocean. Exploitation of offshore oil and gas reserves is playing an ever-increasing role in the energy supplies of US, Australia, NZ, China, and Peru. The high cost of recovering offshore oil and gas, combined with the wide swings in world prices for oil since 1985, has slowed but not stopped new drillings. |
| Electricity - consumption | 7.341 billion kWh (2001) | - |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
| Electricity - production | 7.894 billion kWh (2001) | - |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Hvannadalshnukur 2,119 m (at Vatnajokull glacier) |
lowest point: Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench -10,924 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
| Environment - current issues | water pollution from fertilizer runoff; inadequate wastewater treatment | endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Transboundary Air Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Environmental Modification, Marine Life Conservation |
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| Ethnic groups | homogeneous mixture of descendants of Norse and Celts 94%, population of foreign origin 6% | - |
| Exchange rates | Icelandic kronur per US dollar - 76.709 (2003), 91.6617 (2002), 97.4246 (2001), 78.6159 (2000), 72.3353 (1999) | - |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON (since 1 August 1996)
head of government: Prime Minister Halldor ASGRIMSSON (since 15 September 2004); note - Former Prime Minister David ODDSSON switched positions with former Foreign Minister Halldor ASGRIMMSON cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament elections: president, which is largely a ceremonial post, elected by popular vote for a four-year term; election last held 26 June 2004 (next to be held June 2008); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Olafur Ragnar GRIMSSON wins with 85.6% of the vote, Baldur AGUSTSSON 12.5%, Astthor MAGNUSSON 1.9% |
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| Exports | 0 bbl/day (2001) | - |
| Exports - commodities | fish and fish products 70%, animal products, aluminum, diatomite, ferrosilicon | - |
| Exports - partners | Germany 17.4%, UK 17.4%, Netherlands 11.2%, US 9.8%, Spain 6.3%, Denmark 5%, Norway 4.5%, France 4% (2003) | - |
| Fiscal year | calendar year | - |
| Flag description | blue with a red cross outlined in white extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag) | - |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $8.678 billion (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 9.2% (includes fishing 12%)
industry: 26.7% services: 64.2% (2003 est.) |
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| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $30,900 (2003 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2.6% (2003 est.) | - |
| Geographic coordinates | 65 00 N, 18 00 W | 0 00 N, 160 00 W |
| Geography - note | strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental Europe | the major chokepoints are the Bering Strait, Panama Canal, Luzon Strait, and the Singapore Strait; the Equator divides the Pacific Ocean into the North Pacific Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean; dotted with low coral islands and rugged volcanic islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean |
| Highways | total: 12,955 km
paved/oiled gravel: 3,863 km unpaved: 9,092 km (2003) |
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| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA |
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| Imports | 15,470 bbl/day (2001) | - |
| Imports - commodities | machinery and equipment, petroleum products; foodstuffs, textiles | - |
| Imports - partners | Germany 11.8%, Denmark 8%, US 7.5%, UK 7.5%, Norway 7%, Sweden 6.5%, Netherlands 6.2%, Italy 4.7% (2003) | - |
| Independence | 1 December 1918 (became a sovereign state under the Danish Crown); 17 June 1944 (from Denmark) | - |
| Industrial production growth rate | 8.1% (2003 est.) | - |
| Industries | fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production, geothermal power; tourism | - |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 3.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.44 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.17 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
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| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.1% (2003 est.) | - |
| International organization participation | Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCO, WEU (associate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | - |
| Judicial branch | Supreme Court or Haestirettur (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice); eight district courts (justices are appointed for life by the Minister of Justice) | - |
| Labor force | 160,000 (2003) | - |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 5.1%, fishing and fish processing 11.8%, manufacturing 12.9%, construction 10.7%, services 59.5% (1999) | - |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | - |
| Land use | arable land: 0.07%
permanent crops: 0% other: 99.93% (2001) |
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| Languages | Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken | - |
| Legal system | civil law system based on Danish law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | - |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Althing (63 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 May 2003 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: percent of vote by party - Independence Party 33.7%, Social Democratic Alliance 31.0%, Progressive Party 17.7%, Left-Green Alliance 8.8%, Liberal Party 7.4%; seats by party - Independence Party 22, Social Democratic Alliance 20, Progressive Party 12, Left-Green Alliance 5, Liberal Party 4 |
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| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 80.18 years
male: 78.18 years female: 82.27 years (2004 est.) |
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| Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.9% (1997 est.) male: NA female: NA |
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| Location | Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the UK | body of water between the Southern Ocean, Asia, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere |
| Map references | Arctic Region | Political Map of the World |
| Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
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| Merchant marine | total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,341 GRT/6,019 DWT
by type: petroleum tanker 1 registered in other countries: 26 (2004 est.) |
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| Military - note | defense is provided by the US-manned Icelandic Defense Force (IDF) headquartered at Keflavik | - |
| Military branches | no regular armed forces; Police, Coast Guard | - |
| Military expenditures - dollar figure | 0 | - |
| Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 75,568 (2004 est.) | - |
| Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 66,503 (2004 est.) | - |
| National holiday | Independence Day, 17 June (1944) | - |
| Nationality | noun: Icelander(s)
adjective: Icelandic |
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| Natural hazards | earthquakes and volcanic activity | surrounded by a zone of violent volcanic and earthquake activity sometimes referred to as the "Pacific Ring of Fire"; subject to tropical cyclones (typhoons) in southeast and east Asia from May to December (most frequent from July to October); tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form south of Mexico and strike Central America and Mexico from June to October (most common in August and September); cyclical El Nino/La Nina phenomenon occurs in the equatorial Pacific, influencing weather in the Western Hemisphere and the western Pacific; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme north from October to May; persistent fog in the northern Pacific can be a maritime hazard from June to December |
| Natural resources | fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite | oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish |
| Net migration rate | 2.38 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | - |
| Political parties and leaders | Independence Party or IP [David ODDSSON]; Left-Green Alliance or LGP [Steingrimur SIGFUSSON]; Liberal Party or LP [Gudjon KRISTJANSSON]; Progressive Party or PP [Halldor ASGRIMSSON]; Social Democratic Alliance (includes People's Alliance or PA, Social Democratic Party or SDP, Women's List) or SDA [Ossur SKARPHEDINSSON] | - |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
| Population | 293,966 (July 2004 est.) | - |
| Population below poverty line | NA | - |
| Population growth rate | 0.97% (2004 est.) | - |
| Ports and harbors | Akureyri, Hornafjordhur, Isafjordhur, Keflavik, Raufarhofn, Reykjavik, Seydhisfjordhur, Straumsvik, Vesttmannaeyjar | Bangkok (Thailand), Hong Kong, Kao-hsiung (Taiwan), Los Angeles (US), Manila (Philippines), Pusan (South Korea), San Francisco (US), Seattle (US), Shanghai (China), Singapore, Sydney (Australia), Vladivostok (Russia), Wellington (NZ), Yokohama (Japan) |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 3, FM about 70 (including repeaters), shortwave 1 (1998) | - |
| Religions | Evangelical Lutheran 87.1%, other Protestant 4.1%, Roman Catholic 1.7%, other 7.1% (2002) | - |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female total population: 1 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | - |
| Telephone system | general assessment: extensive domestic service
domestic: the trunk network consists of coaxial and fiber-optic cables and microwave radio relay links international: country code - 354; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean), 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions); note - Iceland shares the Inmarsat earth station with the other Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden) |
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| Telephones - main lines in use | 190,700 (2003) | - |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 279,100 (2003) | - |
| Television broadcast stations | 14 (plus 156 low-power repeaters) (1997) | - |
| Terrain | mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast deeply indented by bays and fiords | surface currents in the northern Pacific are dominated by a clockwise, warm-water gyre (broad circular system of currents) and in the southern Pacific by a counterclockwise, cool-water gyre; in the northern Pacific, sea ice forms in the Bering Sea and Sea of Okhotsk in winter; in the southern Pacific, sea ice from Antarctica reaches its northernmost extent in October; the ocean floor in the eastern Pacific is dominated by the East Pacific Rise, while the western Pacific is dissected by deep trenches, including the Mariana Trench, which is the world's deepest |
| Total fertility rate | 1.93 children born/woman (2004 est.) | - |
| Transportation - note | - | Inside Passage offers protected waters from southeast Alaska to Puget Sound (Washington state) |
| Unemployment rate | 3.4% (2003 est.) | - |
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