Pacific Ocean (2008) | Spain (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | - | 17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma)and 2 autonomous cities* (ciudades autonomas, singular - ciudad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Baleares (Balearic Islands), Ceuta*, Canarias (Canary Islands), Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Comunidad Valenciana, Extremadura, Galicia, La Rioja, Madrid, Melilla*, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco (Basque Country)
note: the autonomous cities of Ceuta and Melilla plus three small islands of Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera, administered directly by the Spanish central government, are all located along the coast of Morocco and are collectively referred to as Places of Sovereignty (Plazas de Soberania) |
Age structure | - | 0-14 years: 14.4% (male 3,000,686/female 2,821,325)
15-64 years: 67.8% (male 13,751,963/female 13,653,426) 65 years and over: 17.7% (male 2,993,496/female 4,176,946) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | - | grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish |
Airports | - | 157 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | - | total: 96
over 3,047 m: 16 2,438 to 3,047 m: 10 1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 914 to 1,523 m: 24 under 914 m: 26 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 61
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 15 under 914 m: 44 (2006) |
Area | total: 155.557 million sq km
note: includes Bali Sea, Bering Sea, Bering Strait, Coral Sea, East China Sea, Gulf of Alaska, Gulf of Tonkin, Philippine Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, South China Sea, Tasman Sea, and other tributary water bodies |
total: 504,782 sq km
land: 499,542 sq km water: 5,240 sq km note: there are 2 autonomous cities - Ceuta and Melilla - and 17 autonomous communities including Balearic Islands and Canary Islands, and three small Spanish possessions off the coast of Morocco - Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera |
Area - comparative | about 15 times the size of the US; covers about 28% of the global surface; larger than the total land area of the world | slightly more than twice the size of Oregon |
Background | 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. | Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World Wars I and II, but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). A peaceful transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization (Spain joined the EU in 1986), have given Spain one of the most dynamic economies in Europe and made it a global champion of freedom. Continuing challenges include Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) terrorism and relatively high unemployment. |
Birth rate | - | 10.06 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | - | revenues: $440.9 billion
expenditures: $448.4 billion; including capital expenditures of $12.8 billion (2005 est.) |
Capital | - | name: Madrid
geographic coordinates: 40 24 N, 3 41 W time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October note: Spain is divided into two time zones, including the Canary Islands |
Climate | 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 | temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast |
Coastline | 135,663 km | 4,964 km |
Constitution | - | 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978 |
Country name | - | conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain
conventional short form: Spain local long form: Reino de Espana local short form: Espana |
Death rate | - | 9.72 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | - | $970.7 billion (2005 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Eduardo AGUIRRE, Jr.
embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: PSC 61, APO AE 09642 telephone: [34] (91) 587-2200 FAX: [34] (91) 587-2303 consulate(s) general: Barcelona |
Diplomatic representation in the US | - | chief of mission: Ambassador Carlos WESTENDORP
chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0100, 728-2340 FAX: [1] (202) 833-5670 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico) |
Disputes - international | some maritime disputes (see littoral states) | in 2003, Gibraltar residents voted overwhelmingly by referendum to remain a British colony and against a "total shared sovereignty" arrangement while demanding participation in talks between the UK and Spain; Spain disapproves of UK plans to grant Gibraltar greater autonomy; Morocco protests Spain's control over the coastal enclaves of Ceuta, Melilla, and the islands of Penon de Velez de la Gomera, Penon de Alhucemas and Islas Chafarinas, and surrounding waters; Morocco serves as the primary launching site of illegal migration into Spain from North Africa; Portugal does not recognize Spanish sovereignty over the territory of Olivenza based on a difference of interpretation of the 1815 Congress of Vienna and the 1801 Treaty of Badajoz |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $1.33 billion (1999) |
Economy - overview | 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 the 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 led to fluctuations in new drillings. | The Spanish economy boomed from 1986 to 1990, averaging five percent annual growth. After a European-wide recession in the early 1990s, the Spanish economy resumed moderate growth starting in 1994. Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies. The center-right government of former President AZNAR successfully worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching the European single currency (the euro) on 1 January 1999. The AZNAR administration continued to advocate liberalization, privatization, and deregulation of the economy and introduced some tax reforms to that end. Unemployment fell steadily under the AZNAR administration but remains high at 10.1%. Growth of 2.5% in 2003, 2.6% in 2004, and 3.4% in 2005 was satisfactory given the background of a faltering European economy. The socialist president, RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO, has initiated economic and social reforms that are generally popular among the masses of people, but that are anathema to religious and other conservative elements. Adjusting to the monetary and other economic policies of an integrated Europe, reducing unemployment, and absorbing widespread social changes will pose challenges to Spain over the next few years. |
Electricity - consumption | - | 231.2 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | - | 7.5 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - imports | - | 8.7 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - production | - | 247.3 billion kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench -10,924 m
highest point: sea level 0 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico de Teide (Tenerife) on Canary Islands 3,718 m |
Environment - current issues | endangered marine species include the dugong, sea lion, sea otter, seals, turtles, and whales; oil pollution in Philippine Sea and South China Sea | pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; water quality and quantity nationwide; air pollution; deforestation; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
Ethnic groups | - | composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types |
Exchange rates | - | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) |
Executive branch | - | chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975); Heir Apparent Prince FELIPE, son of the monarch, born 30 January 1968
head of government: President of the Government and Prime Minister Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (since 17 April 2004); First Vice President and Deputy Prime Minister (and Minister of the Presidency) Maria Teresa FERNANDEZ DE LA VEGA (since 18 April 2004) and Second Vice President (and Minister of Economy and Finance) Pedro SOLBES (since 18 April 2004) cabinet: Council of Ministers designated by the president note: there is also a Council of State that is the supreme consultative organ of the government, but its recommendations are non-binding elections: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually proposed president by the monarch and elected by the National Assembly; election last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008); vice presidents appointed by the monarch on the proposal of the president election results: Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO (PSOE) elected president; percent of National Assembly vote - 52.29% |
Exports | - | 135,100 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | - | machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, medicines, other consumer goods |
Exports - partners | - | France 19.4%, Germany 11.4%, Portugal 9.5%, UK 8.5%, Italy 8.4% (2005) |
Fiscal year | - | calendar year |
Flag description | - | three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar |
GDP - composition by sector | - | agriculture: 4%
industry: 29.5% services: 66.5% (2005 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | - | 3.5% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 0 00 N, 160 00 W | 40 00 N, 4 00 W |
Geography - note | 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 | strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar |
Heliports | - | 8 (2006) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | - | lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1990) |
Illicit drugs | - | key European gateway country and consumer for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market; destination and minor transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin; money-laundering site for Colombian narcotics trafficking organizations and organized crime |
Imports | - | 1.582 million bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | - | machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, measuring and medical control instruments |
Imports - partners | - | Germany 15%, France 14.5%, Italy 8.5%, UK 5.8%, Netherlands 4.9%, China 4.3% (2005) |
Independence | - | the Iberian peninsula was characterized by a variety of independent kingdoms prior to the Muslim occupation that began in the early 8th century AD and lasted nearly seven centuries; the small Christian redoubts of the north began the reconquest almost immediately, culminating in the seizure of Granada in 1492; this event completed the unification of several kingdoms and is traditionally considered the forging of present-day Spain |
Industrial production growth rate | - | 0.7% (2005 est.) |
Industries | - | textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism, clay and refractory products, footwear, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment |
Infant mortality rate | - | total: 4.37 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.76 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.95 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | - | 3.4% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | - | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BCIE, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, SECI (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNRWA, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC |
Irrigated land | - | 37,800 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | - | Supreme Court or Tribunal Supremo |
Labor force | - | 20.67 million (2005 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | - | agriculture: 5.3%
industry: 30.1% services: 64.6% (2004 est.) |
Land boundaries | - | total: 1,917.8 km
border countries: Andorra 63.7 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km, Morocco (Ceuta) 6.3 km, Morocco (Melilla) 9.6 km |
Land use | - | arable land: 27.18%
permanent crops: 9.85% other: 62.97% (2005) |
Languages | - | Castilian Spanish 74%, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%; note - Castilian is the official language nationwide; the other languages are official regionally |
Legal system | - | civil law system, with regional applications; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | - | bicameral; General Courts or National Assembly or Las Cortes Generales consists of the Senate or Senado (259 seats - 208 members directly elected by popular vote and the other 51 appointed by the regional legislatures to serve four-year terms) and the Congress of Deputies or Congreso de los Diputados (350 seats; members are elected by popular vote on block lists by proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008); Congress of Deputies - last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - PP 49%, PSOE 38.9%, Entesa Catalona de Progress 5.7%, CiU 1.99%, PNV 2.8%, CC 1.4%; seats by party - PP 102, PSOE 81, Entesa Catalona de Progress 12, CiU 4, PNV 6, CC 3; Congress of Deputies - percent of vote by party - PSOE 43.3%, PP 37.8%, CiU 3.2%, ERC 2.5%, PNV 1.6%, IU 3.2%, CC 0.9%; seats by party - PSOE 164, PP 148, CiU 10, ERC 8, PNV 7, IU 2, CC 3, other 8 |
Life expectancy at birth | - | total population: 79.65 years
male: 76.32 years female: 83.2 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | - | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.9% male: 98.7% female: 97.2% (2003 est.) |
Location | body of water between the Southern Ocean, Asia, Australia, and the Western Hemisphere | Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, North Atlantic Ocean, and Pyrenees Mountains, southwest of France |
Map references | Political Map of the World | Europe |
Maritime claims | - | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm (applies only to the Atlantic Ocean) |
Merchant marine | - | total: 169 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,902,839 GRT/1,874,161 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 13, chemical tanker 14, container 27, liquefied gas 9, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 49, petroleum tanker 15, refrigerated cargo 5, roll on/roll off 20, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 5 foreign-owned: 36 (Cuba 1, Denmark 1, Germany 12, Italy 2, Mexico 3, Norway 7, UK 1, Uruguay 2, US 7) registered in other countries: 112 (Bahamas 12, Belize 3, Brazil 4, Cambodia 1, Cape Verde 1, Cuba 1, Cyprus 7, Italy 1, Malta 6, Marshall Islands 3, Nigeria 1, Panama 53, Portugal 15, Saint Kitts and Nevis 2, UK 1, Venezuela 1) (2006) |
Military branches | - | Spanish Armed Forces: Army (Ejercito de Tierra), Spanish Navy (Armada Espanola, AE; includes Marine Corps), Spanish Air Force (Ejercito del Aire Espanola, EdA) (2006) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $9,906.5 million (2003) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.2% (2003) |
National holiday | - | National Day, 12 October |
Nationality | - | noun: Spaniard(s)
adjective: Spanish |
Natural hazards | 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 | periodic droughts |
Natural resources | oil and gas fields, polymetallic nodules, sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, fish | coal, lignite, iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, uranium, tungsten, mercury, pyrites, magnesite, fluorspar, gypsum, sepiolite, kaolin, potash, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | - | 0.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 7,962 km; oil 622 km; refined products 3,447 km (2006) |
Political parties and leaders | - | Basque Nationalist Party or PNV [Josu Jon IMAZ]; Canarian Coalition or CC (a coalition of five parties) [Paulino RIVERO Baute]; Convergence and Union or CiU [Artur MAS i Gavarro] (a coalition of the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia or CDC [Artur MAS i Gavarro] and the Democratic Union of Catalonia or UDC [Josep Antoni DURAN y LLEIDA]); Entesa Catalonia de Progress (a Senate coalition grouping four Catalan parties - PSC, ERC, ICV, EUA); Galician Nationalist Bloc or BNG [Anxo Manuel QUINTANA]; Party of Independents from Lanzarote or PIL [Dimas MARTIN Martin]; Popular Party or PP [Mariano RAJOY]; Republican Left of Catalonia or ERC [Joan Puigcercos BOIXASSA]; Spanish Socialist Workers Party or PSOE [Jose Luis RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO]; United Left or IU (a coalition of parties including the PCE and other small parties) [Gaspar LLAMAZARES] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | - | business and landowning interests; Catholic Church; free labor unions (authorized in April 1977); Socialist General Union of Workers or UGT and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union or USO; university students; Trade Union Confederation of Workers' Commissions or CC.OO.; Nunca Mas (Galician for "Never Again"; formed in response to the oil tanker Prestige oil spill) |
Population | - | 40,397,842 (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | - | NA% |
Population growth rate | - | 0.13% (2006 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | - | AM 208, FM 715, shortwave 1 (1998) |
Railways | - | total: 14,873 km
broad gauge: 11,919 km 1.668-m gauge (6,950 km electrified) standard gauge: 998 km 1.435-m gauge (998 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,928 km 1.000-m gauge (815 km electrified); 28 km 0.914-m gauge (28 km electrified) (2005) |
Religions | - | Roman Catholic 94%, other 6% |
Sex ratio | - | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | - | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | - | general assessment: generally adequate, modern facilities; teledensity is 45 main lines for each 100 persons
domestic: NA international: country code - 34; 22 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries |
Telephones - main lines in use | - | 18.322 million (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | - | 41.328 million (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | - | 224 (plus 2,105 repeaters)
note: these figures include 11 television broadcast stations and 88 repeaters in the Canary Islands (1995) |
Terrain | 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 | large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north |
Total fertility rate | - | 1.28 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Transportation - note | Inside Passage offers protected waters from southeast Alaska to Puget Sound (Washington state) | - |
Unemployment rate | - | 9.2% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | - | 1,000 km (2003) |