50.7% (2004)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 42.2% (2003)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
53.8 (2003)
Investment (gross fixed):
30.4% of GDP (2007 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $2.344 billion
expenditures: $2.631 billion; including capital expenditures of $106
million (2007 est.)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
Public debt:
24.1% of GDP (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
6.9% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
NA (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
16.61% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$1.573 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$5.266 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$6.298 billion (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products:
bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp, tilapia, lobster;
corn, African palm
Industries:
sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products
Industrial production growth rate:
4.4% (2007 est.)
Electricity - production:
5.753 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
4.233 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
11.8 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 50.2%
hydro: 49.8%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
46,830 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
417.9 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:
44,040 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance:
-$1.225 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$5.594 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
coffee, shrimp, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber
Exports - partners:
US 67.2%, El Salvador 4.9%, Guatemala 3.9% (2007)
Imports:
$8.556 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials,
chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs
Imports - partners:
US 52.4%, Guatemala 7.1%, El Salvador 5.2%, Mexico 4.5%, Costa Rica
4.2% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient:
$680.8 million (2005)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$2.546 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$3.411 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA
Currency (code):
lempira (HNL)
Currency code:
HNL
Exchange rates:
lempiras (HNL) per US dollar - 18.9 (2007), 18.895 (2006), 18.92
(2005), 18.206 (2004), 17.345 (2003)
Communications
Honduras
Telephones - main lines in use:
713,600 (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
2.241 million (2006)
Telephone system:
general assessment: inadequate system
domestic: beginning in 2003, private sub-operators allowed to
provide fixed-lines in order to expand telephone coverage;
fixed-line teledensity has increased to about 10 per 100 persons;
mobile-cellular telephone service has been increasing rapidly and
subscribership in 2006 exceeded 30 per 100 persons
international: country code - 504; landing point for both the
Americas Region Caribbean Ring System (ARCOS-1) and the MAYA-1 fiber
optic submarine cable system that together provide connectivity to
South and Central America, parts of the Caribbean, and the US;
satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); connected to
Central American Microwave System
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 241, FM 53, shortwave 12 (1998)
Radios:
2.45 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
11 (plus 17 repeaters) (1997)
Televisions:
570,000 (1997)
Internet country code:
.hn
Internet hosts:
13,370 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
8 (2000)
Internet users:
344,100 (2006)
Transportation
Honduras
Airports:
112 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 12
2,438 to 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 3 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 100
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 15
under 914 m: 83 (2007)
Railways:
total: 699 km
narrow gauge: 279 km 1.067-m gauge; 420 km 0.914-m gauge (2006)
Roadways:
total: 13,600 km
paved: 2,775 km
unpaved: 10,825 km (2000)
Waterways:
465 km (most navigable only by small craft) (2007)
Merchant marine:
total: 123
by type: bulk carrier 10, cargo 57, chemical tanker 6, container 1,
liquefied gas 1, passenger 4, passenger/cargo 7, petroleum tanker
25, refrigerated cargo 7, roll on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 1
foreign-owned: 42 (Bangladesh 1, Canada 1, China 3, Egypt 3, Greece
4, Hong Kong 1, Israel 1, Japan 4, South Korea 6, Lebanon 1, Mexico
1, Singapore 12, Taiwan 2, Tanzania 1, Vietnam 1) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
La Ceiba, Puerto Cortes, San Lorenzo, Tela
Military
Honduras
Military branches:
Army, Navy (includes Naval Infantry), Honduran Air Force (Fuerza
Aerea Hondurena, FAH) (2008)
Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age for voluntary 2 to 3-year military service (2004)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,868,940
females age 16-49: 1,825,770 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,359,406
females age 16-49: 1,371,418 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 90,876
female: 87,292 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures:
0.6% of GDP (2006 est.)
Transnational Issues
Honduras
Disputes - international:
International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled on the delimitation of
"bolsones" (disputed areas) along the El Salvador-Honduras border in
1992 with final settlement by the parties in 2006 after an
Organization of American States (OAS) survey and a further ICJ
ruling in 2003; the 1992 ICJ ruling advised a tripartite resolution
to a maritime boundary in the Gulf of Fonseca with consideration of
Honduran access to the Pacific; El Salvador continues to claim tiny
Conejo Island, not mentioned in the ICJ ruling, off Honduras in the
Gulf of Fonseca; Honduras claims the Belizean-administered Sapodilla
Cays off the coast of Belize in its constitution, but agreed to a
joint ecological park around the cays should Guatemala consent to a
maritime corridor in the Caribbean under the OAS-sponsored 2002
Belize-Guatemala Differendum; memorials and countermemorials were
filed by the parties in Nicaragua's 1999 and 2001 proceedings
against Honduras and Colombia at the ICJ over the maritime boundary
and territorial claims in the western Caribbean Sea - final public
hearings are scheduled for 2007
Illicit drugs:
transshipment point for drugs and narcotics; illicit producer of
cannabis, cultivated on small plots and used principally for local
consumption; corruption is a major problem; some money-laundering
activity
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
======================================================================
@Hong Kong
Introduction
Hong Kong
Background:
Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China
the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the
19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on
19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region (SAR) of China on 1 July 1997. In this
agreement, China promised that, under its "one country, two systems"
formula, China's socialist economic system would not be imposed on
Hong Kong and that Hong Kong would enjoy a high degree of autonomy
in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the next 50
years.
Geography
Hong Kong
Location:
Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China
Geographic coordinates:
22 15 N, 114 10 E
Map references:
Southeast Asia
Area:
total: 1,092 sq km
land: 1,042 sq km
water: 50 sq km
Area - comparative:
six times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries:
total: 30 km
regional border: China 30 km
Coastline:
733 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate:
subtropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainy from
spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall
Terrain:
hilly to mountainous with steep slopes; lowlands in north
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Tai Mo Shan 958 m
Natural resources:
outstanding deepwater harbor, feldspar
Land use:
arable land: 5.05%
permanent crops: 1.01%
other: 93.94% (2001)
Irrigated land:
20 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
occasional typhoons
Environment - current issues:
air and water pollution from rapid urbanization
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Marine Dumping (associate member), Ship Pollution
(associate member)
Geography - note:
more than 200 islands
People
Hong Kong
Population:
7,018,636 (July 2008 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 12.6% (male 463,300/female 422,945)
15-64 years: 74.4% (male 2,535,246/female 2,684,495)
65 years and over: 13% (male 425,500/female 487,150) (2008 est.)
Median age:
total: 41.7 years
male: 41.4 years
female: 42 years (2008 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.532% (2008 est.)
Birth rate:
7.37 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Death rate:
6.6 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Net migration rate:
4.55 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.08 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.1 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.87 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2008 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 2.93 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 3.11 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 2.73 deaths/1,000 live births (2008 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 81.77 years
male: 79.07 years
female: 84.69 years (2008 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1 children born/woman (2008 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
2,600 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
fewer than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Chinese/Hong Konger
adjective: Chinese/Hong Kong
Ethnic groups:
Chinese 95%, Filipino 1.6%, Indonesian 1.3%, other 2.1% (2006 census)
Religions:
eclectic mixture of local religions 90%, Christian 10%
Languages:
Chinese (Cantonese) 89.2% (official), other Chinese dialects 6.4%,
English 3.2% (official), other 1.2% (2001 census)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over has ever attended school
total population: 93.5%
male: 96.9%
female: 89.6% (2002)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 14 years
male: 14 years
female: 13 years (2006)
Education expenditures:
3.9% of GDP (2006)
Government
Hong Kong
Country name:
conventional long form: Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
conventional short form: Hong Kong
local long form: Xianggang Tebie Xingzhengqu
local short form: Xianggang
abbreviation: HK
Dependency status:
special administrative region of China
Government type:
limited democracy
Administrative divisions:
none (special administrative region of China)
Independence:
none (special administrative region of China)
National holiday:
National Day (Anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic
of China), 1 October (1949); note - 1 July 1997 is celebrated as
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Establishment Day
Constitution:
Basic Law, approved in March 1990 by China's National People's
Congress, is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"
Legal system:
based on English common law
Suffrage:
direct election - 18 years of age for a number of non-executive
positions; universal for permanent residents living in the territory
of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election - limited
to about 220,000 members of functional constituencies and an
800-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings,
central government bodies, and municipal organizations
Executive branch:
chief of state: President of China HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003)
head of government: Chief Executive Donald TSANG (since 24 June 2005)
cabinet: Executive Council consists of 15 official members and 16
non-official members
elections: chief executive elected for five-year term by 800-member
electoral committee; last held on 25 March 2007 (next to be held in
2012)
election results: Donald TSANG elected chief executive receiving
84.1% of the vote of the election committee; Alan LEONG received
15.9%
Legislative branch:
unicameral Legislative Council or LEGCO (60 seats; 30 seats
indirectly elected by functional constituencies, 30 elected by
popular vote; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 7 September 2008 (next to be held in September
2012)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by parties -
pro-Beijing 37; pro-democracy 23
Judicial branch:
Court of Final Appeal in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
Political parties and leaders:
Association for Democracy and People's Livelihood or ADPL [Frederick
FUNG Kin-kee]; Citizens Party [Alex CHAN Kai-chung]; Civic Party
[KUAN Hsin-chi]; Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress
of Hong Kong or DAB [TAM Yiu Cheng]; Democratic Party [Albert HO];
Frontier Party [Emily LAU Wai-hing]; League of Social Democrats
[Raymond WONG]; Liberal Party [James TIEN Pei-chun]
note: political blocs include: pro-democracy - ADPL, Democratic
Party, Frontier Party, League of Social Democrats; pro-Beijing -
DAB, Liberal Party, The Alliance (a group of five generally
pro-government and pro-business Legco members from functional
constituencies); there is no political party ordinance, so there are
no registered political parties; politically active groups register
as societies or companies
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (pro-China); Chinese
Manufacturers' Association of Hong Kong; Confederation of Trade
Unions or CTU (pro-democracy) [LAU Chin-shek, president; LEE
Cheuk-yan, general secretary]; Federation of Hong Kong Industries;
Federation of Trade Unions or FTU (pro-China) [CHENG Yiu-tong,
executive councilor]; Hong Kong Alliance in Support of the Patriotic
Democratic Movement in China [Szeto WAH, chairman]; Hong Kong and
Kowloon Trade Union Council (pro-Taiwan); Hong Kong General Chamber
of Commerce; Hong Kong Professional Teachers' Union [CHEUNG
Man-kwong, president]; Neighborhood and Workers' Service Center or
NWSC (pro-democracy); The Alliance [Bernard CHARNWUT, executive
committee member]
International organization participation:
ADB, APEC, BIS, ICC, IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), IOC, ISO
(correspondent), ITUC, UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WMO,
WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (special administrative region of China); Hong Kong Economic
and Trade Office in Washington and two other cities carries out
normal liaison and communication with the US Government and other US
entities
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Consul General Joseph A. DONOVAN, Jr.
consulate(s) general: 26 Garden Road, Hong Kong
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 1, FPO AP 96521-0006
telephone: [852] 2523-9011
FAX: [852] 2845-1598
Flag description:
red with a stylized, white, five-petal bauhinia flower in the center
Economy
Hong Kong
Economy - overview:
Hong Kong has a free market economy highly dependent on
international trade. In 2006, the total value of goods and services
trade, including the sizable share of reexports, was equivalent to
400% of GDP. The territory has become increasingly integrated with
mainland China over the past few years through trade, tourism, and
financial links. The mainland has long been Hong Kong's largest
trading partner, accounting for 46% of Hong Kong's total trade by
value in 2006. As a result of China's easing of travel restrictions,
the number of mainland tourists to the territory has surged from 4.5
million in 2001 to 13.6 million in 2006, when they outnumbered
visitors from all other countries combined. Hong Kong has also
established itself as the premier stock market for Chinese firms
seeking to list abroad. Bolstered by several successful initial
public offerings in early 2007, by September 2007 mainland companies
accounted for one-third of the firms listed on the Hong Kong Stock
Exchange, and more than half of the Exchange's market
capitalization. During the past decade, as Hong Kong's manufacturing
industry moved to the mainland, its service industry has grown
rapidly and now accounts for 91% of the territory's GDP. Hong Kong's
natural resources are limited, and food and raw materials must be
imported. GDP growth averaged a strong 5% from 1989 to 2007, despite
the economy suffering two recessions during the Asian financial
crisis in 1997-98 and the global downturn in 2001-02. Hong Kong
continues to link its currency closely to the US dollar, maintaining
an arrangement established in 1983.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$293.3 billion (2007 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$206.7 billion (2007 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
6.4% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$42,000 (2007 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 0.1%
industry: 8.1%
services: 91.7% (2007 est.)
Labor force:
3.64 million (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
manufacturing 6.5%, construction 2.1%, wholesale and retail trade,
restaurants, and hotels 43.3%, financing, insurance, and real estate
20.7%, transport and communications 7.8%, community and social
services 19.5%
note: above data exclude public sector (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate:
4% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
53.3 (2007)
Investment (gross fixed):
20.3% of GDP (2007 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $36.9 billion
expenditures: $29.4 billion (FY07-08 est.)
Fiscal year:
1 April - 31 March
Public debt:
12.5% of GDP (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
5.75% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
6.75% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$51.25 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$578.1 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$259.7 billion (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products:
fresh vegetables; poultry, pork; fish
Industries:
textiles, clothing, tourism, banking, shipping, electronics,
plastics, toys, watches, clocks
Industrial production growth rate:
-0.8% (2007 est.)
Electricity - production:
36.61 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
38.02 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:
4.035 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
10.96 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
293,100 bbl/day (2006 est.)
Oil - exports:
22,420 bbl/day (2006)
Oil - imports:
314,700 bbl/day (2006)
Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
2.69 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
2.69 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)
Current account balance:
$28.04 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$345.9 billion f.o.b., including reexports (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
electrical machinery and appliances, textiles, apparel, footwear,
watches and clocks, toys, plastics, precious stones, printed material
Exports - partners:
China 48.7%, US 13.7%, Japan 4.5% (2007)
Imports:
$365.6 billion (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
raw materials and semi-manufactures, consumer goods, capital goods,
foodstuffs, fuel (most is re-exported)
Imports - partners:
China 46.3%, Japan 10%, Taiwan 7.1%, Singapore 6.8%, US 4.9%, South
Korea 4.2% (2007)
Economic aid - recipient:
$6.95 million (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$152.7 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$588 billion (2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$1.185 trillion (2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$1.027 trillion (2007 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$2.97 trillion (2007 est.)
Currency (code):
Hong Kong dollar (HKD)
Currency code:
HKD
Exchange rates:
Hong Kong dollars (HKD) per US dollar - 7.802 (2007), 7.7678 (2006),
7.7773 (2005), 7.788 (2004), 7.7868 (2003)
Communications
Hong Kong
Telephones - main lines in use:
3.875 million (2007)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
10.55 million (2007)
Telephone system:
general assessment: modern facilities provide excellent domestic and
international services
domestic: microwave radio relay links and extensive fiber-optic
network
international: country code - 852; multiple international submarine
cables provide connections to Asia, US, Australia, the Middle East,
and Western Europe; satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (1 Pacific
Ocean and 2 Indian Ocean); coaxial cable to Guangzhou, China
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 5, FM 9, shortwave 0 (2004)
Radios:
4.45 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations:
55 (2 TV networks, each broadcasting on 2 channels) (2007)
Televisions:
1.84 million (1997)
Internet country code:
.hk
Internet hosts:
817,766 (2008)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
17 (2000)
Internet users:
3.961 million (2007)
Transportation
Hong Kong
Airports:
2 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
over 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2007)
Heliports:
5 (2007)
Roadways:
total: 2,009 km
paved: 2,009 km (2007)
Merchant marine:
total: 1,114
by type: barge carrier 2, bulk carrier 525, cargo 142, carrier 3,
chemical tanker 68, combination ore/oil 2, container 205, liquefied
gas 22, passenger 6, passenger/cargo 5, petroleum tanker 114, roll
on/roll off 4, specialized tanker 9, vehicle carrier 7
foreign-owned: 703 (Belgium 3, Canada 44, China 324, Denmark 24,
France 1, Germany 6, Greece 22, Indonesia 7, Iran 15, Japan 111,
South Korea 3, Norway 40, Philippines 1, Portugal 1, Russia 2,
Singapore 18, Syria 1, Taiwan 11, UAE 1, UK 39, US 29)
registered in other countries: 357 (Bahamas 30, Bermuda 4, Cambodia
8, China 12, Cyprus 2, Georgia 2, Honduras 1, India 1, Jamaica 1,
Kiribati 4, Liberia 44, Malaysia 14, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 4,
Mexico 1, Netherlands Antilles 2, Norway 20, Panama 130, Philippines
1, Portugal 2, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 6, Seychelles 1,
Sierra Leone 1, Singapore 47, Tuvalu 7, UK 2, Vietnam 1, unknown 8)
(2008)
Ports and terminals:
Hong Kong
Military
Hong Kong
Military branches:
no regular indigenous military forces; Hong Kong garrison of China's
People's Liberation Army (PLA) includes elements of the PLA Ground
Forces, PLA Navy, and PLA Air Force; these forces are under the
direct leadership of the Central Military Commission in Beijing and
under administrative control of the adjacent Guangzhou Military
Region (2007)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,772,820
females age 16-49: 1,941,448 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 1,438,165
females age 16-49: 1,561,252 (2008 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 42,173
female: 38,753 (2008 est.)
Military expenditures:
NA
Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of China
Transnational Issues
Hong Kong
Disputes - international:
none
Illicit drugs:
despite strenuous law enforcement efforts, faces difficult
challenges in controlling transit of heroin and methamphetamine to
regional and world markets; modern banking system provides conduit
for money laundering; rising indigenous use of synthetic drugs,
especially among young people
This page was last updated on 18 December, 2008
======================================================================
@Hungary
Introduction
Hungary
Background: