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Compare World (2004) - United States (2003)

Compare World (2004) z United States (2003)

 World (2004)United States (2003)
 WorldUnited States
Administrative divisions 271 nations, dependent areas, and other entities 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: 28.2% (male 925,276,767; female 875,567,830)


15-64 years: 64.5% (male 2,083,789,165; female 2,033,226,759)


65 years and over: 7.2% (male 203,286,504; female 257,705,851)


note: some countries do not maintain age structure information, thus a slight discrepancy exists between the total world population and the total for world age structure (2004 est.)
0-14 years: 20.9% (male 31,098,473; female 29,675,712)


15-64 years: 66.7% (male 96,628,469; female 97,061,559)


65 years and over: 12.4% (male 14,888,185; female 20,990,156) (2003 est.)
Agriculture - products - wheat, corn, other grains, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; forest products; fish
Airports - 14,801 (2002)
Airports - with paved runways - total: 5,131


over 3,047 m: 185


2,438 to 3,047 m: 222


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1,365


914 to 1,523 m: 2,390


under 914 m: 969 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 9,670


over 3,047 m: 1


2,438 to 3,047 m: 7


1,524 to 2,437 m: 158


914 to 1,523 m: 1,702


under 914 m: 7,802 (2002)
Area total: 510.072 million sq km


land: 148.94 million sq km


water: 361.132 million sq km


note: 70.8% of the world's surface is water, 29.2% is land
total: 9,629,091 sq km


land: 9,158,960 sq km


water: 470,131 sq km


note: includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia
Area - comparative land area about 16 times the size of the US 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 Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology, from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased concerns about the environment, including loss of forests, shortages of energy and water, the decline in biological diversity, and air pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820, to 2 billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in 1988, and 6 billion in 2000. For the 21st century, the continued exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes (e.g., advances in medicine) and fears (e.g., development of even more lethal weapons of war). 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 20.24 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 14.14 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget - revenues: $1.946 trillion


expenditures: $2.052 trillion, including capital expenditures of NA (2002 est.)
Capital - Washington, DC
Climate two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones form a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates 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 356,000 km


note: 98 nations and other entities are islands that border no other countries, they include: American Samoa, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Ashmore and Cartier Islands, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Baker Island, Barbados, Bassas da India, Bermuda, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Christmas Island, Clipperton Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Comoros, Cook Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Cuba, Cyprus, Dominica, Europa Island, Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Faroe Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso Islands, Greenland, Grenada, Guam, Guernsey, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Howland Island, Iceland, Jamaica, Jan Mayen, Japan, Jarvis Island, Jersey, Johnston Atoll, Juan de Nova Island, Kingman Reef, Kiribati, Madagascar, Maldives, Malta, Isle of Man, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritius, Mayotte, Federated States of Micronesia, Midway Islands, Montserrat, Nauru, Navassa Island, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Palmyra Atoll, Paracel Islands, Philippines, Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Singapore, Solomon Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Spratly Islands, Sri Lanka, Svalbard, Tokelau, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tromelin Island, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Virgin Islands, Wake Island, Wallis and Futuna, Taiwan
19,924 km
Constitution - 17 September 1787, effective 4 March 1789
Country name - conventional long form: United States of America


conventional short form: United States


abbreviation: US or USA
Currency - US dollar (USD)
Death rate 8.86 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 8.44 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external $2 trillion for less developed countries (2002 est.) $862 billion (1995 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, but recently entered into a new 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)
Disputes - international stretching over 250,000 km, the world's 325 international land boundaries separate the 192 independent states and 72 dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, and other miscellaneous entities; ethnicity, culture, race, religion, and language have divided states into separate political entities as much as history, physical terrain, political fiat, or conquest, resulting in sometimes arbitrary and imposed boundaries; maritime states have claimed limits and have so far established over 130 maritime boundaries and joint development zones to allocate ocean resources and to provide for national security at sea; boundary, borderland/resource, and territorial disputes vary in intensity from managed or dormant to violent or militarized; most disputes over the alignment of political boundaries are confined to short segments and are today less common and less hostile than borderland, resource, and territorial disputes; undemarcated, indefinite, porous, and unmanaged boundaries, however, encourage illegal cross-border activities, uncontrolled migration, and confrontation; territorial disputes may evolve from historical and/or cultural claims, or they may be brought on by resource competition; ethnic clashes continue to be responsible for much of the territorial fragmentation around the world; disputes over islands at sea or in rivers frequently form the source of territorial and boundary conflict; other sources of contention include access to water and mineral (especially petroleum) resources, fisheries, and arable land; nonetheless, most nations cooperate to clarify their international boundaries and to resolve territorial and resource disputes peacefully; regional discord directly affects the sustenance and welfare of local populations, often leaving the world community to cope with resultant refugees, hunger, disease, impoverishment, deforestation, and desertification prolonged drought in the Mexico border region has strained water-sharing arrangements; 1990 Maritime Boundary Agreement in the Bering Sea awaits Russian Duma ratification; 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 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)
Economic aid - recipient official development assistance (ODA) $50 billion -
Economy - overview Global output rose by 3.7% in 2003, led by China (9.1%), India (7.6%), and Russia (7.3%). The other 14 successor nations of the USSR and the other old Warsaw Pact nations again experienced widely divergent growth rates; the three Baltic nations continued as strong performers, in the 5%-7% range of growth. Growth results posted by the major industrial countries varied from a loss by Germany (-0.1%) to a strong gain by the United States (3.1%). The developing nations also varied in their growth results, with many countries facing population increases that erode gains in output. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government often finds its control over resources slipping as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in many of the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, in India, in Iraq, in Indonesia, and in Canada. Externally, the central government is losing decision-making powers to international bodies. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification, underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems and priorities, the industrialized countries devote insufficient resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. The introduction of the euro as the common currency of much of Western Europe in January 1999, while paving the way for an integrated economic powerhouse, poses economic risks because of varying levels of income and cultural and political differences among the participating nations. The terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 accentuate a further growing risk to global prosperity, illustrated, for example, by the reallocation of resources away from investment to anti-terrorist programs. The opening of war in March 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq added new uncertainties to global economic prospects. After the coalition victory, the complex political difficulties and the high economic cost of establishing domestic order in Iraq became major global problems that continue into 2004. The US has the largest and most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per capita GDP of $37,600. 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, lay off surplus workers, and 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, although 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 2.45%. 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 military industries and introduced uncertainties about investment and employment in other sectors of the economy. Long-term problems include inadequate investment in economic infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension costs of an aging population, sizable trade deficits, and stagnation of family income in the lower economic groups.
Electricity - consumption 13.94 trillion kWh (2001 est.) 3.602 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports - 18.17 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports - 38.48 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production 14.93 trillion kWh (2001 est.) 3.719 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 71.4%


hydro: 5.6%


nuclear: 20.7%


other: 2.3% (2001)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Bentley Subglacial Trench -2,540 m


note: in the oceanic realm, Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench is the lowest point, lying -10,924 m below the surface of the Pacific Ocean


highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
lowest point: Death Valley -86 m


highest point: Mount McKinley 6,194 m
Environment - current issues large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion 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; very limited natural fresh water resources in much of the western part of the country require careful management; desertification
Environment - international agreements - 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, Nuclear Test Ban, 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 - 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 - British pounds per US dollar - 0.6661 (2002), 0.6944 (2001), 0.6596 (2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), Canadian dollars per US dollar - 1.5693 (2002), 1.5488 (2001), 1.4851 (2000), 1.4857 (1999), 1.4835 (1998), Japanese yen per US dollar - 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001), 107.77 (2000), 113.91 (1999), 130.91 (1998), euros per US dollar - 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.08540 (2000), 0.93863 (1999)


note: financial institutions in France, Italy, and Germany and eight other European countries started using the euro on 1 January 1999 with the euro replacing the local currency in consenting countries for all transactions in 2002
Executive branch - chief of state: President George W. BUSH (since 20 January 2001) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (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) and Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (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 7 November 2000 (next to be held 2 November 2004)


election results: George W. BUSH elected president; percent of popular vote - George W. BUSH (Republican Party) 48%, Albert A. GORE, Jr. (Democratic Party) 48%, Ralph NADER (Green Party) 3%, other 1%
Exports 712 billion cu m (2001 est.) NA (2001)
Exports - commodities the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services capital goods, automobiles, industrial supplies and raw materials, consumer goods, agricultural products
Exports - partners US 16.4%, Germany 7.9%, UK 5.2%, France 5.1%, China 5%, Japan 4.6% (2003) Canada 23.2%, Mexico 14.1%, Japan 7.4%, UK 4.8% (2002)
Fiscal year - 1 October - 30 September
Flag description - thirteen 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 GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity - $51.48 trillion (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $10.45 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 4%


industry: 32%


services: 64% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 2%


industry: 18%


services: 80% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $8,200 (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $36,300 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 3.8% (2003 est.) 2.4% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates - 38 00 N, 97 00 W
Geography - note the world is now thought to be about 4.55 billion years old, just about one-third of the 13-billion-year age estimated for the universe 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 - 149 (2002)
Highways total: NA km


paved: NA km


unpaved: NA km
total: 6,334,859 km


paved: 3,737,567 km (including 89,426 km of expressways)


unpaved: 2,597,292 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA


highest 10%: NA
lowest 10%: 1.8%


highest 10%: 30.5% (1997)
Illicit drugs cocaine: worldwide, coca is grown on an estimated 173,450 hectares-almost exclusively in South America with 70% in Colombia; potential cocaine production during 2003 is estimated at 728 metric tons (or 835 metric tons of export quality cocaine); coca eradication programs continue in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru; 376 metric tons of export quality cocaine are documented to have been seized in 2003, and 26 metric tons disrupted (jettisoned or destroyed); consumption of export quality cocaine is estimated to have been 800 metric tons


opiates: cultivation of opium poppy occurred on an estimated 137,944 hectares in 2003-mostly in Southwest and Southeast Asia-with 44% in Afghanistan, potentially produced 3,775 metric tons of opium - which conceivably could be converted to the equivalent of 429 metric tons of pure heroin; opium eradication programs have been undertaken in Afghanistan, Burma, Colombia, Mexico, Pakistan, Thailand, and Vietnam
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 697.5 billion cu m (2001 est.) NA (2001)
Imports - commodities the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services crude oil and refined petroleum products, machinery, automobiles, consumer goods, industrial raw materials, food and beverages
Imports - partners US 9.9%, Germany 9.4%, China 7.9%, Japan 6.7%, France 4.7% (2003) Canada 17.8%, Mexico 11.3%, China 11.1%, Japan 10.4%, Germany 5.3% (2002)
Independence - 4 July 1776 (from Great Britain)
Industrial production growth rate 3% (2002 est.) -0.4% (2002 est.)
Industries dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces; the accelerated development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems 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: 50.31 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 52.17 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 48.33 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
total: 6.75 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 7.46 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 6.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) developed countries 1% to 4% typically; developing countries 5% to 60% typically; national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from declining prices in Japan to hyperinflation in several Third World countries (2003 est.) 1.6% (2002)
International organization participation - AfDB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, ESCAP, 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, MINURSO, MIPONUH, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNHCR, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 7,000 (2002 est.)
Irrigated land 2,714,320 sq km (1998 est.) 214,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch - Supreme Court (its nine justices are appointed for life by the president with confirmation by the Senate); United States Courts of Appeal; United States District Courts; State and County Courts
Labor force NA 141.8 million (includes unemployed) (2001)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA managerial and professional 31%, technical, sales and administrative support 28.9%, services 13.6%, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and crafts 24.1%, farming, forestry, and fishing 2.4%


note: figures exclude the unemployed (2001)
Land boundaries the land boundaries in the world total 250,472 km (not counting shared boundaries twice); two nations, China and Russia, each border 14 other countries


note: 43 nations and other areas are landlocked, these include: Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe; two of these, Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan, are doubly landlocked
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 thus remains part of Cuba; the base boundary is 29 km
Land use arable land: 10.73%


permanent crops: 1%


other: 88.27% (2001)
arable land: 19.32%


permanent crops: 0.22%


other: 80.46% (1998 est.)
Languages Chinese, Mandarin 14.37%, Hindi 6.02%, English 5.61%, Spanish 5.59%, Bengali 3.4%, Portuguese 2.63%, Russian 2.75%, Japanese 2.06%, German, Standard 1.64%, Korean 1.28%, French 1.27% (2000 est.)


note: percents are for "first language" speakers only
English, Spanish (spoken by a sizable minority)
Legal system all members of the UN are parties to the statute that established the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court based on English common law; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Legislative branch - 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 5 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); House of Representatives - last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004)


election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 51, Democratic Party 48, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Republican Party 226, Democratic Party 204, independent 1, undecided 4
Life expectancy at birth total population: 64.05 years


male: 62.48 years


female: 65.7 years (2004 est.)
total population: 77.14 years


male: 74.37 years


female: 80.05 years (2003 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 77%


male: 83%


female: 71% (1995 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 97%


male: 97%


female: 97% (1979 est.)
Location - North America, bordering both the North Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between Canada and Mexico
Map references Physical Map of the World, Political Map of the World, Standard Time Zones of the World North America
Maritime claims a variety of situations exist, but in general, most countries make the following claims measured from the mean low-tide baseline as described in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea: territorial sea - 12 nm, contiguous zone - 24 nm, and exclusive economic zone - 200 nm; additional zones provide for exploitation of continental shelf resources and an exclusive fishing zone; boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 nm contiguous zone: 24 NM


continental shelf: not specified


exclusive economic zone: 200 NM


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine - total: 348 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 9,414,676 GRT/12,207,346 DWT


ships by type: barge carrier 2, bulk 71, cargo 26, chemical tanker 13, combination bulk 2, combination ore/oil 1, container 79, freighter 15, heavy lift carrier 3, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 73, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 46, short-sea passenger 2, specialized tanker 2, vehicle carrier 9


note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Australia 1, Canada 4, Denmark 15, France 1, Germany 1, Netherlands 3, Norway 7, Puerto Rico 4, Singapore 11, Sweden 1, United Kingdom 3; also, the US owns 549 additional ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 29,616,347 DWT that operate under the registries of Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Belize, Bermuda, Cambodia, Canada, Cayman Islands, Cyprus, Finland, Gibraltar, Hong Kong (China), Indonesia, Isle of Man, Italy, Liberia, Malta, Marshall Islands, Netherlands, Norway, Norway (NIS), Panama, Peru, Philippines, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Singapore, Tonga, UK, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna (2002 est.)
Military - note - note: 2002 estimates for military manpower are based on projections that do not take into consideration the results of the 2000 census
Military branches - 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 aggregate real expenditure on arms worldwide in 1999 remained at approximately the 1998 level, about three-quarters of a trillion dollars (1999 est.) $276.7 billion (FY99 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP roughly 2% of gross world product (1999 est.) 3.2% (FY99 est.)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 73,597,731 (2003 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - NA
Military manpower - military age - 18 years of age (2003 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 2,116,002 (2003 est.)
National holiday - Independence Day, 4 July (1776)
Nationality - noun: American(s)


adjective: American
Natural hazards large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions) 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 the rapid depletion of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe, the former USSR, and China) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber
Net migration rate - 3.52 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
People - note - data for the US are based on projections that do not take into consideration the results of the 2000 census
Pipelines - petroleum products 244,620 km; natural gas 548,665 km (2003)
Political parties and leaders - Democratic Party [Terence McAULIFFE]; Green Party [leader NA]; Libertarian Party [Steve DASBACH]; Republican Party [Governor Marc RACICOT]
Political pressure groups and leaders - NA
Population 6,379,157,361 (July 2004 est.) 290,342,554 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line - 12.7% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate 1.14% (2004 est.) 0.92% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki, Kobe, Marseille, Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama 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 NA, FM NA, shortwave NA AM 4,762, FM 5,542, shortwave 18 (1998)
Railways total: 1,115,205 km


broad gauge: 257,481 km


standard gauge: 671,413 km


narrow gauge: 186,311 km (2003)
total: 194,731 km mainline routes


standard gauge: 194,731 km 1.435-m gauge


note: represents the aggregate length of roadway of all line-haul railroads including an estimate for class II and III railroads; excludes 135,185 km of yard tracks, sidings, and parallel lines (2000)
Religions Christians 32.71% (of which Roman Catholics 17.28%, Protestants 5.61%, Orthodox 3.49%, Anglicans 1.31%), Muslims 19.67%, Hindus 13.28%, Buddhists 5.84%, Sikhs 0.38%, Jews 0.23%, other religions 13.05%, non-religious 12.43%, atheists 2.41% (2002 est.) Protestant 56%, Roman Catholic 28%, Jewish 2%, other 4%, none 10% (1989)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female


total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2004 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 (2003 est.)
Suffrage - 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: NA
general assessment: a very 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: 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 843,923,500 (2003) 194 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular NA 69.209 million (1998)
Television broadcast stations NA 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 the greatest ocean depth is the Mariana Trench at 10,924 m in the Pacific Ocean 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 2.62 children born/woman (2004 est.) 2.07 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 4%-12% unemployment 5.8% (2002)
Waterways - 41,009 km


note: navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes
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