Compare Taiwan (2008) - United States (2004)

Compare Taiwan (2008) z United States (2004)

	Taiwan (2008)	United States (2004)

Administrative divisions	includes main island of Taiwan plus smaller islands nearby and off coast of China's Fujian Province; Taiwan is divided into 18 counties (hsien, singular and plural), 5 municipalities (shih, singular and plural), and 2 special municipalities (chuan-shih, singular and plural) note: Taiwan uses a variety of romanization systems; while a modified Wade-Giles system still dominates, the city of Taipei has adopted a Pinyin romanization for street and place names within its boundaries; other local authorities use different romanization systems; names for administrative divisions that follow are taken from the Taiwan Yearbook 2007 published by the Government Information Office in Taipei. counties: Changhua, Chiayi [county], Hsinchu, Hualien, Kaohsiung [county], Kinmen, Lienchiang, Miaoli, Nantou, Penghu, Pingtung, Taichung, Tainan, Taipei [county], Taitung, Taoyuan, Yilan, and Yunlin municipalities: Chiayi [city], Hsinchu, Keelung, Taichung, Tainan special municipalities: Kaohsiung [city], Taipei [city]	50 states and 1 district; Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Age structure	0-14 years: 17.8% (male 2,117,051/female 1,954,709) 15-64 years: 72% (male 8,306,351/female 8,141,268) 65 years and over: 10.2% (male 1,150,001/female 1,189,492) (2007 est.)	0-14 years: 20.8% (male 31,122,974; female 29,713,748) 15-64 years: 66.9% (male 97,756,380; female 98,183,309) 65 years and over: 12.4% (male 15,078,204; female 21,172,956) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	rice, corn, vegetables, fruit, tea; pigs, poultry, beef, milk; fish	wheat, corn, other grains, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; forest products; fish
Airports	41 (2007)	14,807 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 38 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 9 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 3 (2007)	total: 5,128 over 3,047 m: 188 2,438 to 3,047 m: 221 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1,375 914 to 1,523 m: 2,383 under 914 m: 961 (2004 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (2007)	total: 9,729 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 7 1,524 to 2,437 m: 160 914 to 1,523 m: 1,718 under 914 m: 7,843 (2004 est.)
Area	total: 35,980 sq km land: 32,260 sq km water: 3,720 sq km note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy islands	total: 9,631,418 sq km land: 9,161,923 sq km water: 469,495 sq km note: includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Maryland and Delaware combined	about half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa; about half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly larger than China; about two and a half times the size of Western Europe
Background	In 1895, military defeat forced China to cede Taiwan to Japan. Taiwan reverted to Chinese control after World War II. Following the Communist victory on the mainland in 1949, 2 million Nationalists fled to Taiwan and established a government using the 1946 constitution drawn up for all of China. Over the next five decades, the ruling authorities gradually democratized and incorporated the local population within the governing structure. In 2000, Taiwan underwent its first peaceful transfer of power from the Nationalist to the Democratic Progressive Party. Throughout this period, the island prospered and became one of East Asia's economic "Tigers." The dominant political issues continue to be the relationship between Taiwan and China - specifically the question of eventual unification - as well as domestic political and economic reform.	Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65) and the Great Depression of the 1930s. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. The economy is marked by steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.
Birth rate	8.97 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)	14.13 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $49 billion expenditures: $5.19 billion (2007 est.)	revenues: $1.782 trillion expenditures: $2.156 trillion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003)
Capital	name: Taipei geographic coordinates: 25 03 N, 121 30 E time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)	Washington, DC
Climate	tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon (June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year	mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
Coastline	1,566.3 km	19,924 km
Constitution	25 December 1947; amended in 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2005 note: constitution adopted on 25 December 1946; went into effect on 25 December 1947	17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Taiwan local long form: none local short form: T'ai-wan former: Formosa	conventional long form: United States of America conventional short form: United States abbreviation: US or USA
Currency	-	US dollar (USD)
Death rate	6.54 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)	8.34 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$85.8 billion (31 December 2007)	$1.4 trillion (2001 est.)
Dependent areas	-	American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Wake Island note: from 18 July 1947 until 1 October 1994, the US administered the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. It entered into a political relationship with all four political units: the Northern Mariana Islands is a commonwealth in political union with the US (effective 3 November 1986); Palau concluded a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 1 October 1994); the Federated States of Micronesia signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 3 November 1986); the Republic of the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 21 October 1986)
Diplomatic representation from the US	none; unofficial commercial and cultural relations with the people on Taiwan are maintained through an unofficial instrumentality - the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) - which has offices in the US and Taiwan; US office at 1700 N. Moore St., Suite 1700, Arlington, VA 22209-1996, telephone: [1] (703) 525-8474, FAX: [1] (703) 841-1385); Taiwan offices at #7 Lane 134, Hsin Yi Road, Section 3, Taipei, Taiwan, telephone: [886] (2) 2162-2000, FAX: [886] (2) 2162-2251; #2 Chung Cheng 3rd Road, 5th Floor, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, telephone: [886] (7) 238-7744, FAX: [886] (7) 238-5237; and the American Trade Center, Room 3208 International Trade Building, Taipei World Trade Center, 333 Keelung Road Section 1, Taipei, Taiwan 10548, telephone: [886] (2) 2720-1550, FAX: [886] (2) 2757-7162	-
Diplomatic representation in the US	none; unofficial commercial and cultural relations with the people of the US are maintained through an unofficial instrumentality, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO), which has its headquarters in Taipei and in the US in Washington, DC; there are also branch offices called Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO) in 12 other US cities	-
Disputes - international	involved in complex dispute with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, and possibly Brunei over the Spratly Islands; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea" has eased tensions but falls short of a legally binding "code of conduct" desired by several of the disputants; Paracel Islands are occupied by China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam; in 2003, China and Taiwan became more vocal in rejecting both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of the Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea where all parties engage in hydrocarbon prospecting	Prolonged drought, population growth, and outmoded practices and infrastructure in the border region has strained water-sharing arrangements with Mexico; undocumented nationals from Mexico and Central America continue to enter the United States illegally; 1990 Maritime Boundary Agreement in the Bering Sea still awaits Russian Duma ratification; managed maritime boundary disputes with Canada at Dixon Entrance, Beaufort Sea, Strait of Juan de Fuca, and around the disputed Machias Seal Island and North Rock; The Bahamas have not been able to agree on a maritime boundary; US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased from Cuba and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease; Haiti claims US-administered Navassa Island; US has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other state; Marshall Islands claims Wake Island
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $6.9 billion (1997)
Economy - overview	Taiwan has a dynamic capitalist economy with gradually decreasing guidance of investment and foreign trade by the authorities. In keeping with this trend, some large, state-owned banks and industrial firms are being privatized. Exports have provided the primary impetus for industrialization. The island runs a large trade surplus, and its foreign reserves are among the world's largest. Despite restrictions on cross-strait links, China has overtaken the US to become Taiwan's largest export market and its second-largest source of imports after Japan. China is also the island's number one destination for foreign direct investment. Strong trade performance in 2007 pushed Taiwan's GDP growth rate above 5%, and unemployment is below 4%.	The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $37,800. In this market-oriented economy, private individuals and business firms make most of the decisions, and the federal and state governments buy needed goods and services predominantly in the private marketplace. US business firms enjoy considerably greater flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At the same time, they face higher barriers to entry in their rivals' home markets than the barriers to entry of foreign firms in US markets. US firms are at or near the forefront in technological advances, especially in computers and in medical, aerospace, and military equipment; their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. The onrush of technology largely explains the gradual development of a "two-tier labor market" in which those at the bottom lack the education and the professional/technical skills of those at the top and, more and more, fail to get comparable pay raises, health insurance coverage, and other benefits. Since 1975, practically all the gains in household income have gone to the top 20% of households. The years 1994-2000 witnessed solid increases in real output, low inflation rates, and a drop in unemployment to below 5%. The year 2001 saw the end of boom psychology and performance, with output increasing only 0.3% and unemployment and business failures rising substantially. The response to the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 showed the remarkable resilience of the economy. Moderate recovery took place in 2002 with the GDP growth rate rising to 2.4%. A major short-term problem in first half 2002 was a sharp decline in the stock market, fueled in part by the exposure of dubious accounting practices in some major corporations. The war in March/April 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq shifted resources to the military. In 2003, growth in output and productivity and the recovery of the stock market to above 10,000 for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were promising signs. Unemployment stayed at the 6% level, however, and began to decline only at the end of the year. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade and budget deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups.
Electricity - consumption	221 billion kWh (2006)	3.602 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2007 est.)	18.17 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2007)	38.48 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	235 billion kWh (2006)	3.719 trillion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Yu Shan 3,952 m	lowest point: Death Valley -86 m highest point: Mount McKinley 6,194 m
Environment - current issues	air pollution; water pollution from industrial emissions, raw sewage; contamination of drinking water supplies; trade in endangered species; low-level radioactive waste disposal	air pollution resulting in acid rain in both the US and Canada; the US is the largest single emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels; water pollution from runoff of pesticides and fertilizers; limited natural fresh water resources in much of the western part of the country require careful management; desertification
Environment - international agreements	party to: none of the selected agreements because of Taiwan's international status signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements because of Taiwan's international status	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, 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, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Hazardous Wastes
Ethnic groups	Taiwanese (including Hakka) 84%, mainland Chinese 14%, indigenous 2%	white 77.1%, black 12.9%, Asian 4.2%, Amerindian and Alaska native 1.5%, native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.3%, other 4% (2000) note: a separate listing for Hispanic is not included because the US Census Bureau considers Hispanic to mean a person of Latin American descent (including persons of Cuban, Mexican, or Puerto Rican origin) living in the US who may be of any race or ethnic group (white, black, Asian, etc.)
Exchange rates	New Taiwan dollars per US dollar - 32.84 (2007), 32.534 (2006), 31.71 (2005), 34.418 (2004), 34.575 (2003)	British pounds per US dollar - 0.6139 (2003), 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), Canadian dollars per US dollar - 1.4045 (2003), 1.5693 (2002), 1.5488 (2001), 1.4851 (2000), 1.4857 (1999), Japanese yen per US dollar - 116.08 (2003), 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001), 107.77 (2000), 113.91 (1999), euros per US dollar - 0.8866 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.08540 (2000), 0.93863 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: President CHEN Shui-bian (since 20 May 2000); Vice President Annette LU (LU Hsiu-lien) (since 20 May 2000) head of government: Premier (President of the Executive Yuan) CHANG Chun-hsiung (since 21 May 2007); Vice Premier (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) CHIOU I-jen (since 21 May 2007) cabinet: Executive Yuan - (ministers appointed by president on recommendation of premier) elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible for a second term); election last held 20 March 2004 (next to be held 22 March 2008); premier appointed by the president; vice premiers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the premier election results: CHEN Shui-bian re-elected president; percent of vote - CHEN Shui-bian 50.1%, LIEN Chan 49.9%	chief of state: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001) ; note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with Senate approval elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by a college of representatives who are elected directly from each state; president and vice president serve four-year terms; election last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2008) election results: George W. BUSH reelected president; percent of popular vote - George W. BUSH (Republican Party) 50.9%, John KERRY (Democratic Party) 48.1%, other 1.0%
Exports	289,200 bbl/day (2006)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	electronic and electrical products, metals, textiles, plastics, chemicals, auto parts (2002)	capital goods, automobiles, industrial supplies and raw materials, consumer goods, agricultural products
Exports - partners	China 24%, Hong Kong 15%, US 13.4%, Japan 6.7% (2007)	Canada 23.4%, Mexico 13.5%, Japan 7.2%, UK 4.7%, Germany 4% (2003)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 October - 30 September
Flag description	red with a dark blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing a white sun with 12 triangular rays	13 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small, white, five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars; the 50 stars represent the 50 states, the 13 stripes represent the 13 original colonies; known as Old Glory; the design and colors have been the basis for a number of other flags, including Chile, Liberia, Malaysia, and Puerto Rico
GDP	-	purchasing power parity - $10.99 trillion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.6% industry: 26.8% services: 71.5% (2007 est.)	agriculture: 1.4% industry: 26.2% services: 72.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $37,800 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	5.5% (2007 est.)	3.1% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	23 30 N, 121 00 E	38 00 N, 97 00 W
Geography - note	strategic location adjacent to both the Taiwan Strait and the Luzon Strait	world's third-largest country by size (after Russia and Canada) and by population (after China and India); Mt. McKinley is highest point in North America and Death Valley the lowest point on the continent
Heliports	4 (2007)	155 (2003 est.)
Highways	-	total: 6,406,296 km paved: 4,148,395 km (including 74,898 km of expressways) unpaved: 2,257,902 km (2002)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 6.7% highest 10%: 41.1% (2002 est.)	lowest 10%: 1.8% highest 10%: 30.5% (1997)
Illicit drugs	regional transit point for heroin, methamphetamine, and precursor chemicals; transshipment point for drugs to Japan; major problem with domestic consumption of methamphetamine and heroin; rising problems with use of ketamine and club drugs	consumer of cocaine shipped from Colombia through Mexico and the Caribbean; consumer of heroin, marijuana, and increasingly methamphetamine from Mexico; consumer of high-quality Southeast Asian heroin; illicit producer of cannabis, marijuana, depressants, stimulants, hallucinogens, and methamphetamine; money-laundering center
Imports	1.208 million bbl/day (2006)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	electronic and electrical products, machinery, petroleum, precision instruments, organic chemicals, metals (2002)	crude oil and refined petroleum products, machinery, automobiles, consumer goods, industrial raw materials, food and beverages
Imports - partners	Japan 21%, China 12.7%, US 12.2%, South Korea 7.1%, Saudi Arabia 4.6% (2007)	Canada 17.4%, China 12.5%, Mexico 10.7%, Japan 9.3%, Germany 5.3% (2003)
Independence	-	4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)
Industrial production growth rate	7.5% (2007 est.)	0.3% (2003 est.)
Industries	electronics, petroleum refining, armaments, chemicals, textiles, iron and steel, machinery, cement, food processing, vehicles, consumer products, pharmaceuticals	leading industrial power in the world, highly diversified and technologically advanced; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining
Infant mortality rate	total: 5.54 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.86 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.19 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)	total: 6.63 deaths/1,000 live births male: 7.31 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.91 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	1.8% (2007 est.)	2.3% (2003)
International organization participation	ADB, APEC, BCIE, ICC, IOC, ITUC, WCL, WTO	AfDB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, G-5, G-7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINUSTAH, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Irrigated land	NA	214,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Judicial Yuan (justices appointed by the president with consent of the Legislative Yuan)	Supreme Court (its nine justices are appointed for life on condition of good behavior by the president with confirmation by the Senate); United States Courts of Appeal; United States District Courts; State and County Courts
Labor force	10.78 million (2007 est.)	147.4 million (includes unemployed) (2003)
Labor force - by occupation	agriculture: 5.3% industry: 36.8% services: 57.9% (2007 est.)	managerial, professional, and technical 34.9%, sales and office 25.5%, manufacturing, extraction, transportation, and crafts 22.7%, other services 16.3%, farming, forestry, and fishing 0.7% note: figures exclude the unemployed (2004)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 12,034 km border countries: Canada 8,893 km (including 2,477 km with Alaska), Mexico 3,141 km note: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba is leased by the US and is part of Cuba; the base boundary is 29 km
Land use	arable land: 24% permanent crops: 1% other: 75% (2001)	arable land: 19.13% permanent crops: 0.22% other: 80.65% (2001)
Languages	Mandarin Chinese (official), Taiwanese (Min), Hakka dialects	English, Spanish (spoken by a sizable minority)
Legal system	based on civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction	federal court system based on English common law; each state has its own unique legal system, of which all but one (Louisiana's) is based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Legislative branch	unicameral Legislative Yuan (113 seats - 73 district members elected by popular vote, 34 at-large members elected on basis of proportion of islandwide votes received by participating political parties, 6 elected by popular vote among aboriginal populations; to serve four-year terms); parties must receive 5% of vote to qualify for at-large seats elections: Legislative Yuan - last held 12 January 2008 (next to be held in January 2012) election results: Legislative Yuan - percent of vote by party - KMT 53.5%, DPP 38.2%, NPSU 2.4%, PFP 0.3%, others 1.6%, independents 4%; seats by party - KMT 81, DPP 27, NPSU 3, PFP 1, independent 1	bicameral Congress consists of the Senate (100 seats, one-third are renewed every two years; two members are elected from each state by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (435 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms) elections: Senate - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006); House of Representatives - last held 2 November 2004 (next to be held November 2006) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 55, Democratic Party 44, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 231, Democratic Party 200, undecided 4
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 77.56 years male: 74.65 years female: 80.74 years (2007 est.)	total population: 77.43 years male: 74.63 years female: 80.36 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.1% male: NA% female: NA% (2003)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 97% male: 97% female: 97% (1999 est.)
Location	Eastern Asia, islands bordering the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, South China Sea, and Taiwan Strait, north of the Philippines, off the southeastern coast of China	North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico
Map references	Southeast Asia	North America
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm	territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: not specified
Merchant marine	total: 102 ships (1000 GRT or over) 2,537,256 GRT/4,203,423 DWT by type: bulk carrier 33, cargo 20, chemical tanker 2, container 21, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 15, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 2 foreign-owned: 4 (Canada 3, France 1) registered in other countries: 489 (Bahamas 1, Bolivia 1, Cambodia 1, Honduras 2, Hong Kong 11, Indonesia 2, Italy 11, Liberia 82, Panama 306, Singapore 60, Thailand 1, UK 11, unknown 3) (2007)	total: 466 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 12,436,658 GRT/14,630,116 DWT by type: barge carrier 8, bulk 69, cargo 75, chemical tanker 12, combination bulk 2, combination ore/oil 1, container 100, multi-functional large load carrier 3, passenger 12, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 81, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 83, short-sea/passenger 3, vehicle carrier 12 foreign-owned: Australia 2, Canada 7, Denmark 17, Malaysia 1, Netherlands 1, Norway 6, Singapore 3, United Kingdom 5 registered in other countries: 670 (2004 est.)
Military branches	Army, Navy (includes Marine Corps), Air Force, Coast Guard Administration, Armed Forces Reserve Command, Combined Service Forces Command, Armed Forces Police Command	Army, Navy and Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard (Coast Guard administered in peacetime by the Department of Homeland Security, but in wartime reports to the Department of the Navy)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	-	$370.7 billion (FY04 est.) (March 2003)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.2% (2006; to increase to 2.85% in 2007)	3.3% (FY03 est.) (February 2004)
Military manpower - availability	-	males age 15-49: 73,597,731 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	-	NA (2004 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	-	males: 2,124,164 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Republic Day (Anniversary of the Chinese Revolution), 10 October (1911)	Independence Day, 4 July (1776)
Nationality	noun: Taiwan (singular and plural) note: example - he or she is from Taiwan; they are from Taiwan adjective: Taiwan	noun: American(s) adjective: American
Natural hazards	earthquakes and typhoons	tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific Basin; hurricanes along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts; tornadoes in the midwest and southeast; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding; permafrost in northern Alaska, a major impediment to development
Natural resources	small deposits of coal, natural gas, limestone, marble, and asbestos	coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber
Net migration rate	0.61 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)	3.41 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	condensate 25 km; gas 661 km (2007)	petroleum products 244,620 km; natural gas 548,665 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders	Democratic Progressive Party or DPP [Frank HSIEH or HSIEH Chang-ting] (acting); Kuomintang or KMT (Nationalist Party) [WU Po-hsiung]; Non-Partisan Solidarity Union or NPSU [CHANG Po-ya]; People First Party or PFP [James SOONG]	Democratic Party [Terence McAULIFFE]; Green Party [leader NA]; Libertarian Party [Steve DASBACH]; Republican Party [Edward GILLESPIE]
Political pressure groups and leaders	Taiwan independence movement, various business and environmental groups note: debate on Taiwan independence has become acceptable within the mainstream of domestic politics on Taiwan; political liberalization and the increased representation of opposition parties in Taiwan's legislature have opened public debate on the island's national identity; a broad popular consensus has developed that the island currently enjoys sovereign independence and - whatever the ultimate outcome regarding reunification or independence - that Taiwan's people must have the deciding voice; public opinion polls consistently show a substantial majority of Taiwan people supports maintaining Taiwan's status quo for the foreseeable future; advocates of Taiwan independence oppose the stand that the island will eventually unify with mainland China; goals of the Taiwan independence movement include establishing a sovereign nation on Taiwan and entering the UN; other organizations supporting Taiwan independence include the World United Formosans for Independence and the Organization for Taiwan Nation Building	NA
Population	22,858,872 (July 2007 est.)	293,027,571 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	0.95% (2007 est.)	12% (2003 est.)
Population growth rate	0.304% (2007 est.)	0.92% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	-	Anchorage, Baltimore, Boston, Charleston, Chicago, Duluth, Hampton Roads, Honolulu, Houston, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, Philadelphia, Port Canaveral, Portland (Oregon), Prudhoe Bay, San Francisco, Savannah, Seattle, Tampa, Toledo
Radio broadcast stations	AM 140, FM 229, shortwave 49	AM 4,762, FM 5,542, shortwave 18 (1998)
Railways	total: 1,588 km standard gauge: 345 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,093 km 1.067-m gauge note: 150 km .762-m gauge (belonging primarily to Taiwan Sugar Corporation and Taiwan Forestry Bureau; some to other entities) (2007)	total: 228,464 km standard gauge: 228,464 km 1.435-m gauge (2003)
Religions	mixture of Buddhist and Taoist 93%, Christian 4.5%, other 2.5%	Protestant 52%, Roman Catholic 24%, Mormon 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 1%, other 10%, none 10% (2002 est.)
Sex ratio	at birth: 1.09 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.083 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.967 male(s)/female total population: 1.026 male(s)/female (2007 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
Suffrage	20 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: provides telecommunications service for every business and private need domestic: thoroughly modern; completely digitalized international: country code - 886; numerous submarine cables provide links throughout Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Europe, and US; 2 satellite earth stations	general assessment: a large, technologically advanced, multipurpose communications system domestic: a large system of fiber-optic cable, microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, and domestic satellites carries every form of telephone traffic; a rapidly growing cellular system carries mobile telephone traffic throughout the country international: country code - 1; 24 ocean cable systems in use; satellite earth stations - 61 Intelsat (45 Atlantic Ocean and 16 Pacific Ocean), 5 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region), and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions) (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use	14.497 million (2006)	181,599,900 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	23.249 million (2006)	158.722 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations	76 (46 digital and 30 analog)	more than 1,500 (including nearly 1,000 stations affiliated with the five major networks - NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, and PBS; in addition, there are about 9,000 cable TV systems) (1997)
Terrain	eastern two-thirds mostly rugged mountains; flat to gently rolling plains in west	vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii
Total fertility rate	1.12 children born/woman (2007 est.)	2.07 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	3.9% (2007)	6% (2003)
Waterways	-	41,009 km (19,312 km used for commerce) note: Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km, including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km, shared with Canada (2004)

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