from the 2008-09 recession, the first global downturn since 1946.
Gross World Product (GWP) grew 4.6%, largely on the strength of
rebounding exports, which rose about 20% from the level of 2009.
Growth was not evenly distributed across countries, however. Lower
income countries - those with per capita incomes below $30,000 per
year - averaged 6.3% growth, while higher income countries - with
per capita incomes above $30,000 - averaged just 2.8% growth. And
countries with current account surpluses averaged 6.0% growth, while
those with current account deficits averaged just 3.4% growth. Among
large economies, China (+10.1%), Taiwan (+8.3%), India (+8.3%),
Brazil (+7.5%), and South Korea (+6.1%) recorded the biggest GDP
gains - China also became the world's largest exporter. Continuing
uncertainties in mortgage and financial markets resulted in slower
growth in Japan (+3.0%), the US (+2.8%), and the European Union
(+1.7%). In 2010, global unemployment continued to creep upwards,
reaching 8.8% - underemployment, especially in the developing world,
remained much higher. Global gross fixed investment stabilized at
about 23% of GWP, after a significant drop in 2009. World trade
appears to be returning to pre-2009 patterns, with current account
surpluses or deficits rising for a majority of countries. World
external debt, however, dropped again in 2010 - about 5% from the
2009 level, as many countries reduced borrowing. Many, if not most,
countries pursued expansionary monetary and fiscal policies. The
global money supply, both narrowly and broadly defined, increased
roughly 10%, as countries tried to keep interest rates low; the
global budget deficit stablilized at roughly $3.5 trillion, as
countries tried to rein in spending and slow the rise of public debt.
The international financial crisis of 2008-09 presents the world
economy with a major new challenge, together with several
long-standing ones. The fiscal stimulus packages put in place in
2009-10 required most countries to run budget deficits - government
balances have deteriorated for 14 out of every 15 countries.
Treasuries issued new public debt - totaling $5.5 trillion since
2008 - to pay for the additional expenditures. To keep interest
rates low, many central banks monetized that debt, injecting large
sums of money into the economies. As economic activity picks up,
central banks will face the difficult task of containing inflation
without raising interest rates so high they snuff out further
growth. At the same time, governments will face the difficult task
of spurring current growth and employment without saddling their
economies with so much debt that they sacrifice long-term growth and
financial stability.
Long-standing challenges the world faces are several. The addition
of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is
exacerbating the problems of underemployment, pollution,
waste-disposal, epidemics, water-shortages, famine, over-fishing of
oceans, deforestation, desertification, and depletion of
non-renewable resources. The nation-state, as a bedrock
economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over
international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology.
Internally, central governments often find their 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, central
governments are losing decisionmaking powers to international
bodies, most notably the EU. 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 the participating nations are culturally and
politically diverse and have varying levels and rates of growth of
income, and hence, differing needs for monetary and fiscal policies.
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.
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
an economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. The
terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 accentuated a
growing risk to global prosperity, illustrated, for example, by the
reallocation of resources away from investment to anti-terrorist
programs. Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan added new uncertainties to
global economic prospects.
Despite these challenges, the world economy also shows great
promise. Technology has made possible further advances in all
fields, from agriculture, to medicine, alternative energy,
metallurgy, and transportation. Improved global communications have
greatly reduced the costs of international trade, helping the world
gain from the international division of labor, raise living
standards, and reduce income disparities among nations. Much of the
resilience of the world economy in the aftermath of the financial
crisis resulted from government leaders around the globe working in
concert to stem the financial onslaught, knowing well the lessons of
past economic failures.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$74.43 trillion (2010 est.)
$71.17 trillion (2009 est.)
$71.67 trillion (2008 est.)
note: data are in 2010 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
GWP (gross world product): $62.22 trillion (2010 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4.6% (2010 est.)
-0.7% (2009 est.)
2.7% (2008 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$11,100 (2010 est.)
$10,800 (2009 est.)
$11,000 (2008 est.)
note: data are in 2010 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 5.8%
industry: 30.8%
services: 63.4% (2010 est.)
Labor force:
3.232 billion (2010 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 37.3%
industry: 21.7%
services: 41% (2005 est.)
Unemployment rate:
8.8% (2010 est.)
8.2% (2009 est.)
note: 30% (2007 est.) combined unemployment and underemployment in
many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically
4%-12% unemployment
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.7%
highest 10%: 27.3% (2005 est.)
Investment (gross fixed):
23.4% of GDP (2010 est.)
23.1% of GDP (2009 est.) (2010 est.)
Public debt:
58.3% of GDP (2010 est.)
56.2% of GDP (2009 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
developed countries 2.5%
developing countries 5.6%
note: developed countries 0% to 4% typically; developing countries
5% to 10% typically; national inflation rates vary widely in
individual cases; inflation rates have declined for most countries
for the last several years, held in check by increasing
international competition from several low wage countries, and by
soft demand as a result of the world financial crisis (2010 est.)
Stock of narrow money:
$22.4 trillion (31 December 2010 est)
$20.87 trillion (31 December 2009 est)
Stock of broad money:
$75.86 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
$68.54 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
Stock of domestic credit:
$104.2 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
$94.49 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$48.85 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
$36.41 trillion (31 December 2008)
$64.6 trillion (31 December 2007 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
Industrial production growth rate:
4.6% (2010 est.)
Electricity - production:
19.25 trillion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
17.93 trillion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - exports:
615.4 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Electricity - imports:
613.9 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Oil - production:
84.24 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
Oil - consumption:
83.62 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
Oil - exports:
61.37 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports:
63.77 million bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves:
1.378 trillion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
Natural gas - production:
3.127 trillion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
3.073 trillion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
949.9 billion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
947.2 billion cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
187.8 trillion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
Exports:
$14.9 trillion (2010 est.)
$12.39 trillion (2009)
Exports - commodities:
the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services
top ten - share of world trade: electrical machinery, including
computers 14.8%; mineral fuels, including oil, coal, gas, and
refined products 14.4%; nuclear reactors, boilers, and parts 14.2%;
cars, trucks, and buses 8.9%; scientific and precision instruments
3.5%; plastics 3.4%; iron and steel 2.7%; organic chemicals 2.6%;
pharmaceutical products 2.6%; diamonds, pearls, and precious stones
1.9%
Exports - partners:
US 12.7%, Germany 7.2%, China 6.4%, France 4.5%, Japan 4.3%, UK 4.2%
(2008 est.)
Imports:
$14.68 trillion (2010)
$12.19 trillion (2009)
Imports - commodities:
the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services
top ten - share of world trade: see listing for exports
Imports - partners:
China 10.3%, Germany 8.7%, US 8%, Japan 5% (2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$59.09 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
$62.25 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
note: this figure is the sum total of all countries' external debt,
both public and private
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$17.53 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
$16.51 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$18.19 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
$17.28 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
Communications ::World
Telephones - main lines in use:
1.268 billion (2008)
Telephones - mobile cellular:
5.3 billion (2010)
Telephone system:
general assessment: NA
domestic: NA
international: NA
Internet users:
2.1 billion (2010)
Transportation ::World
Airports:
total airports - 44,010 (2010)
top ten by passengers: Atlanta (ATL) - 88,032,086; London (LHR) -
66,037,578; Beijing (PEK) - 65,372,012; Chicago (ORD) - 64,158,343;
Tokyo (HND) - 61,903,656; Paris (CDG) - 57,906,866; Los Angeles
(LAX) - 56,520,843; Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) - 56,030,457; Frankfurt
(FRA) - 50,932,840; Denver (DEN) - 50,167,485 (2009)
top ten by cargo (metric tons): Memphis (MEM) - 3,697,054; Hong Kong
(HKG) - 3,385,313; Shanghai (PVG) - 2,543,394; Inch'on (ICN) -
2,313,001; Paris (CDG) - 2,054,515; Anchorage (ANC) - 1,994,629;
Louisville (SDF) - 1,949,528; Dubai (DXB) - 1,927,520; Frankfurt
(FRA) - 1,887,686; Tokyo (NRT) - 1,851,972 (2009)
Heliports:
3,825 (2010)
Railways:
total: 1,138,632 km (2008)
Roadways:
total: 102,260,304 km (2008)
Waterways:
671,886 km (2004)
top ten longest rivers: Nile (Africa) 6,693 km; Amazon (South
America) 6,436 km; Mississippi-Missouri (North America) 6,238 km;
Yenisey-Angara (Asia) 5,981 km; Ob-Irtysh (Asia) 5,569 km; Yangtze
(Asia) 5,525 km; Yellow (Asia) 4,671 km; Amur (Asia) 4,352 km; Lena
(Asia) 4,345 km; Congo (Africa) 4,344 km
note: if measured by volume, the Amazon is the largest river in the
world
Ports and terminals:
top ten container ports as measured by Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units
(TEUs) throughput: Singapore - 25,866,400; Shanghai - 25,002,000;
Hong Kong - 20,983,000; Shenzhen (China) - 18,250,100; Pusan (South
Korea) - 11,954,861; Guangzhou (China) - 11,190,000; Dubai (UAE) -
11,124,082; Ningbo (China) - 10,502,800; Qingdao (China) -
10,260,000; - Rotterdam - 9,743,290 (2009)
Transportation - note:
as of September 2009, incidents of piracy around the world have more
than doubled over the comparable time period in 2008; half of all
attacks occur in the waters off Somalia, primarily in the Gulf of
Aden; other high risk areas include the waters off Nigeria, the
South China Sea, and waters off Malaysia
Military ::World
Military expenditures:
roughly 2% of GDP of gross world product (2005 est.)
Transnational Issues ::World
Disputes - international:
stretching over 250,000 km, the world's 322 international land
boundaries separate 194 independent states and 71 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; most maritime states have claimed
limits that include territorial seas and exclusive economic zones;
overlapping limits due to adjacent or opposite coasts create the
potential for 430 bilateral maritime boundaries of which 209 have
agreements that include contiguous and non-contiguous segments;
boundary, borderland/resource, and territorial disputes vary in
intensity from managed or dormant to violent or militarized;
undemarcated, indefinite, porous, and unmanaged boundaries tend to
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 and cultural clashes continue to be responsible
for much of the territorial fragmentation and internal displacement
of the estimated 6.6 million people and cross-border displacements
of 8.6 million refugees around the world as of early 2006; just over
one million refugees were repatriated in the same period; other
sources of contention include access to water and mineral
(especially hydrocarbon) resources, fisheries, and arable land;
armed conflict prevails not so much between the uniformed armed
forces of independent states as between stateless armed entities
that detract from the sustenance and welfare of local populations,
leaving the community of nations to cope with resultant refugees,
hunger, disease, impoverishment, and environmental degradation
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated
that in December 2006 there was a global population of 8.8 million
registered refugees and as many as 24.5 million IDPs in more than 50
countries; the actual global population of refugees is probably
closer to 10 million given the estimated 1.5 million Iraqi refugees
displaced throughout the Middle East (2007)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: approximately 800,000 people, mostly women and
children, are trafficked annually across national borders, not
including millions trafficked within their own countries; at least
80% of the victims are female and up to 50% are minors; 75% of all
victims are trafficked into commercial sexual exploitation; almost
two-thirds of the global victims are trafficked intra-regionally
within East Asia and the Pacific (260,000 to 280,000 people) and
Europe and Eurasia (170,000 to 210,000 people)
Tier 2 Watch List: Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahrain,
Bangladesh, Belize, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African
Republic, China, Cote d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Federated
States of Micronesia, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea,
Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, India, Iraq, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Libya,
Mali, Moldova, Montenegro, Nicaragua, Pakistan, Philippines, Qatar,
Republic of the Congo, Russia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,
Senegal, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Ukraine,
United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Venezuela, Yemen
Tier 3: Burma, Chad, Cuba, Eritrea, Fiji, Iran, Kuwait, Malaysia,
Mauritania, Niger, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, Saudi Arabia,
Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Zimbabwe (2009)
Illicit drugs:
cocaine: worldwide coca leaf cultivation in 2007 amounted to 232,500
hectares; Colombia produced slightly more than two-thirds of the
worldwide crop, followed by Peru and Bolivia; potential pure cocaine
production decreased 7% to 865 metric tons in 2007; Colombia
conducts an aggressive coca eradication campaign, but both Peruvian
and Bolivian Governments are hesitant to eradicate coca in key
growing areas; 551 metric tons of export-quality cocaine (85% pure)
is documented to have been seized or destroyed in 2005; US
consumption of export quality cocaine is estimated to have been in
excess of 380 metric tons
opiates: worldwide illicit opium poppy cultivation continued to
increase in 2007, with a potential opium production of 8,400 metric
tons, reaching the highest levels recorded since estimates began in
mid-1980s; Afghanistan is world's primary opium producer, accounting
for 95% of the global supply; Southeast Asia - responsible for 9% of
global opium - saw marginal increases in production; Latin America
produced 1% of global opium, but most was refined into heroin
destined for the US market; if all potential opium was processed
into pure heroin, the potential global production would be 1,000
metric tons of heroin in 2007
page last updated on January 20, 2011
======================================================================
@Yemen (Middle East)
Introduction ::Yemen
Background:
North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The
British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port
of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South
Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist
orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis
from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility
between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the
Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement in 1994
was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to a
delimitation of their border.
Geography ::Yemen
Location:
Middle East, bordering the Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden, and Red Sea,
between Oman and Saudi Arabia
Geographic coordinates:
15 00 N, 48 00 E
Map references:
Middle East
Area:
total: 527,968 sq km
country comparison to the world: 49
land: 527,968 sq km
water: 0 sq km
note: includes Perim, Socotra, the former Yemen Arab Republic (YAR
or North Yemen), and the former People's Democratic Republic of
Yemen (PDRY or South Yemen)
Area - comparative:
slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming
Land boundaries:
total: 1,746 km
border countries: Oman 288 km, Saudi Arabia 1,458 km
Coastline:
1,906 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Climate:
mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate in western
mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot, dry,
harsh desert in east
Terrain:
narrow coastal plain backed by flat-topped hills and rugged
mountains; dissected upland desert plains in center slope into the
desert interior of the Arabian Peninsula
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Arabian Sea 0 m
highest point: Jabal an Nabi Shu'ayb 3,760 m
Natural resources:
petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble; small deposits of coal, gold,
lead, nickel, and copper; fertile soil in west
Land use:
arable land: 2.91%
permanent crops: 0.25%
other: 96.84% (2005)
Irrigated land:
5,500 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
4.1 cu km (1997)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 6.63 cu km/yr (4%/1%/95%)
per capita: 316 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
sandstorms and dust storms in summer
volcanism: Yemen experiences limited volcanic activity; Jebel at
Tair (Jabal al-Tair, Jebel Teir, Jabal al-Tayr, Jazirat at-Tair)
(elev. 244 m, 801 ft), which forms an island in the Red Sea, erupted
in 2007 after awakening from dormancy; other historically active
volcanoes include Harra of Arhab, Harras of Dhamar, Harra es-Sawad,
and Jebel Zubair, although many of these have not erupted in over a
century
Environment - current issues:
limited natural fresh water resources; inadequate supplies of
potable water; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer
Protection
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
strategic location on Bab el Mandeb, the strait linking the Red Sea
and the Gulf of Aden, one of world's most active shipping lanes
People ::Yemen
Population:
23,495,361 (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 48
Age structure:
0-14 years: 43.9% (male 5,108,423/female 4,925,523)
15-64 years: 53.5% (male 6,215,999/female 6,013,334)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 285,752/female 309,207) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 17.9 years
male: 17.8 years
female: 18 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
2.713% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 23
Birth rate:
34.37 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
Death rate:
7.24 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 126
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population
country comparison to the world: 99
Urbanization:
urban population: 31% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 4.9% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female
total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 56.77 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 38
male: 61.46 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 51.85 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 63.36 years
country comparison to the world: 173
male: 61.35 years
female: 65.47 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
4.81 children born/woman (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 30
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 153
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
12,000 (2001 est.)
country comparison to the world: 96
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
NA
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and
typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: dengue fever and malaria
water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2009)
Nationality:
noun: Yemeni(s)
adjective: Yemeni
Ethnic groups:
predominantly Arab; but also Afro-Arab, South Asians, Europeans
Religions:
Muslim including Shaf'i (Sunni) and Zaydi (Shia), small numbers of
Jewish, Christian, and Hindu
Languages:
Arabic (official)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 50.2%
male: 70.5%
female: 30% (2003 est.)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 9 years
male: 11 years
female: 7 years (2005)
Education expenditures:
5.2% of GDP (2008)
country comparison to the world: 60
Government ::Yemen
Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Yemen
conventional short form: Yemen
local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Yamaniyah
local short form: Al Yaman
former: Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and
People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]
Government type:
republic
Capital:
name: Sanaa
geographic coordinates: 15 21 N, 44 12 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
Administrative divisions:
21 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, 'Adan
(Aden), Ad Dali', Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al
Mahwit, Amanat al 'Asimah, 'Amran, Dhamar, Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb,
Lahij, Ma'rib, Raymah, Sa'dah, San'a' (Sanaa), Shabwah, Ta'izz
Independence:
22 May 1990 (Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of
the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the
Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen
(Aden) or South Yemen]); note - previously North Yemen became
independent in November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and became a
republic with the overthrow of the theocratic Imamate in 1962; South
Yemen became independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK)
National holiday:
Unification Day, 22 May (1990)
Constitution:
16 May 1991; amended 29 September 1994 and February 2001
Legal system: