Economy of Germany
German One Euro coin
Currency	Euro (EUR)
Fiscal year	Calendar year
Trade organisations	EU, WTO (via EU membership) and OECD
Statistics
GDP (PPP)	$2.446bn (2005) (5th [1])
GDP growth	2.7% (2006) [2]
GDP per capita	$29,700 (2005)
GDP by sector	agriculture (1.1%), industry (28.6%), services (70.3%) (2005)
Inflation (CPI)	2% (2005)
Pop below poverty line	13.7% (2003)
Gini index	{{{gini}}}
Labour force	43.32m (2005)
Labour force by occupation	services (71.9%), industry (25.9%), agriculture (2.2%) (2005) [3]
Unemployment	8.4% (2006) [4]
Main industries	iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages, shipbuilding, textiles
Trading Partners
Exports	$1.016 trillion (2005)
Export goods	machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles
Main partners	France 10.6%, U.S. 9.3%, UK 8.4%, Italy 7.4%, Netherlands 6.2%, Austria 5.3%, Belgium 5.1%, Spain 4.9%, Switzerland 4% (2003)
Imports	$801bn (2005)
Imports goods	machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals
Main Partners	France 9.2%, Netherlands 8.4%, United States 7.3%, Italy 6.3%, UK 6%, Belgium 4.9%, the People's Republic of China 4.7%, Austria 4% (2003)
Public finances
Public debt	$1,417bn (62.4% of GDP)
Revenues	$1,079bn (2004)
Expenses	$1,173bn (2004)
Economic aid	donor: $5.6bn (1998)
Main source [5] All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars

Frankfurt is Germany's main financial center.

Germany is one of the world's most highly developed market economies. It is the world's third largest economy in USD exchange-rate terms, the fifth largest by purchasing power parity (PPP) and the largest economy in Europe. Image of euro coinage. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation) or EUR (disambiguation). ... WTO redirects here. ... The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an international organization of those developed countries that accept the principles of representative democracy and a free market economy. ... Purchasing power parity (PPP) is in economics the method of using the long-run equilibrium exchange rate of two currencies to equalize the currencies purchasing power. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of world GDP (PPP) by country using the IMF list for 2005 There are three lists of countries of the world sorted by their gross domestic product (GDP) (the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year). ... 2006 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... In economics, a consumer price index (CPI) or retail price index (RPI) is a statistical time-series measure of a weighted average of prices of a specified set of goods and services purchased by consumers. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of countries showing percentage of population who have an income below the national poverty line The poverty line is the level of income below which one cannot afford to purchase all the resources one requires to live. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and also: The International Year of Freshwater The European Disability Year Events January events January 1 Luíz Inácio Lula Da Silva becomes the 37th President of Brazil. ... The Gini coefficient is a measure of inequality developed by the Italian statistician Corrado Gini and published in his 1912 paper Variabilità e mutabilità. It is usually used to measure income inequality, but can be used to measure any form of uneven distribution. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... An 1837 political cartoon about unemployment in the United States. ... 2006 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... General Name, Symbol, Number iron, Fe, 26 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 8, 4, d Appearance lustrous metallic with a grayish tinge Atomic mass 55. ... The steel cable of a colliery winding tower. ... Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel extracted from the ground by coal mining, either underground mining or open-pit mining (surface mining). ... In the most general sense of the word, cement is a binder, a substance which sets and hardens independently, and can bind other materials together. ... A chemical substance is any material substance used in or obtained by a process in chemistry: A chemical compound is a substance consisting of two or more chemical elements that are chemically combined in fixed proportions. ... A machine is any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of tasks. ... The Trikke is a Human Powered Vehicle (HPV) This article is about the means of transport. ... This article is about the engineering discipline. ... The word drink is primarily a verb, meaning to ingest liquids, see Drinking. ... Men from Francisco de Orellanas expedition building a small brigantine, the San Pedro, to be used in the search for food Shipbuilding is the construction of ships. ... Sunday textile market on the sidewalks of Karachi, Pakistan. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Motto: (Out Of Many, One) (traditional) In God We Trust (1956 to date) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington D.C. Largest city New York City None at federal level (English de facto) Government Federal constitutional republic  - President George Walker Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence from... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and also: The International Year of Freshwater The European Disability Year Events January events January 1 Luíz Inácio Lula Da Silva becomes the 37th President of Brazil. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and also: The International Year of Freshwater The European Disability Year Events January events January 1 Luíz Inácio Lula Da Silva becomes the 37th President of Brazil. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1998 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ... ISO 4217 Code USD User(s) the United States, the British Indian Ocean Territory[1], the British Virgin Islands, East Timor, Ecuador, El Salvador, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, Panama, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the insular areas of the United States Inflation 2. ... Download high resolution version (1136x852, 451 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Download high resolution version (1136x852, 451 KB) Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... ISO 4217 Code USD User(s) the United States, the British Indian Ocean Territory[1], the British Virgin Islands, East Timor, Ecuador, El Salvador, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Palau, Panama, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the insular areas of the United States Inflation 2. ... In finance, the exchange rate (also known as the foreign-exchange rate, forex rate or FX rate) between two currencies specifies how much one currency is worth in terms of the other. ... Purchasing power parity (PPP) is in economics the method of using the long-run equilibrium exchange rate of two currencies to equalize the currencies purchasing power. ... This article is 150 kilobytes or more in size. ...

Recent performance has not been dynamic, however, and the German economy is marked by vulnerability to external shocks, domestic structural problems, and continued difficulties in fueling formerly communist East Germany. Communism is an ideology that seeks to establish a classless, stateless social organization based on common ownership of the means of production. ... GDR redirects here. ...

Germans describe their economic system as "social market economy". An extensive array of social services is provided. Although the state intervenes in the economy through the provision of subsidies to selected sectors and the ownership of some segments of the economy, competition and free enterprise are promoted as a matter of government policy. The Social market economy was the German and Austrian economic model during the Cold War era. ... Social security primarily refers to a field of social welfare concerned with social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment, families with children and others. ... A subsidy is generally a monetary grant given by government in support of an activity regarded as being in the public interest. ... Free Enterprise is am economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods; investments that are determined by private decision rather than by state control; and determined in a free market. ...

History

Main article: Economic history of Germany

From the 1948 currency reform until the early 1970s, West Germany experienced almost continuous economic expansion (see also: Wirtschaftswunder), but real GDP growth slowed and even declined from the mid-1970s through the recession of the early 1980s. The economy then experienced eight consecutive years of growth that ended with a downturn beginning in late 1992. Since reunification in 1990, Germany has seen annual average real growth of only about 1.5% and stubbornly high unemployment. The best performance since reunification was registered in 2000, when real growth reached 3.2%. In 2003, Germany experienced a negative GDP growth of about -0.2%. // Middle Ages Medieval Germany, lying on the open Central European Plain, was divided into hundreds of contending kingdoms, principalities, dukedoms, bishoprics, and free cities. ... The term Wirtschaftswunder (English: economic miracle) designates the upturn experienced in the West German and Austrian economies after the Second World War. ... A recession is traditionally defined in macroeconomics as a decline in a countrys real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for two or more successive quarters of a year (equivalently, two consecutive quarters of negative real economic growth). ... The Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) German reunification (German: ) took place on October 3, 1990, when the areas of the former German Democratic Republic (GDR, in English commonly called East Germany) were incorporated into the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG, in English... An 1837 political cartoon about unemployment in the United States. ...

Image File history File links German_Growth_Rates. ...

General view

The German economy is heavily export-oriented, with exports accounting for more than one-third of national output (since spring 2003, Germany exports in absolute figures more goods than any other country). As a result, exports traditionally have been a key element in German macroeconomic expansion. Germany is a strong advocate of closer European economic integration, and its economic and commercial policies are increasingly determined by agreements among European Union (EU) members. Germany uses the common European currency, the Euro, and its monetary policy is set by the European Central Bank in Frankfurt, Germany. Measures of national income and output are used in economics to estimate the value of goods and services produced in an economy. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation) or EUR (disambiguation). ... Central banks set monetary policy. ... Headquarters Frankfurt, Germany Established 1 January 1998 President Jean-Claude Trichet Central Bank of Austria, Belgium, France, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain Currency Euro -ISO 4217 Code EUR Reserves >€4 billion Base borrowing rate 4. ...

Despite this external vulnerability, most foreign and German experts consider domestic structural problems to be mainly responsible for recent sluggish performance. They note that

• an inflexible labour market is a main cause of persistently high unemployment
• the same is true for high non-wage labour costs
• heavy bureaucratic regulations burden many businesses and the process of starting new businesses

Nevertheless, the export oriented economy is doing well (exports grew by about 100% between 1995 and 2005 the main problem is a weak home market, in part due to a low consumer confidence. Therefore, some experts believe that Germany's current trouble doesn't result from domestic structural problems, but from stagnating wages over more than a decade. Germany finances its reunification to a large extent by social insurance contributions, forcing up non-wage labour costs. To conserve the competitiveness of German workers, the unions abandon high wage claims since the mid-1990s (according to the Federal Statistical Office Germany, the average net income after deduction of consumer price rises declined by 2% between 1991 and 2005). Labour economics seeks to understand the functioning of the market for labour. ...

Primary sectors

In 2003 agriculture, forestry, and fishing accounted for only 1.1% of Germany’s gross domestic product (GDP) and employed only 2.2% of the population, down from 4% in 1991. Much of the reduction in employment occurred in the eastern states, where the number of agricultural workers declined by as much as 75% following reunification. However, agriculture is extremely productive, and Germany is able to cover 90% of its nutritional needs with domestic production. In fact, Germany is the third largest agricultural producer in the European Union (EU) after France and Italy. Germany’s principal agricultural products are potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, and cabbages. Despite Germany’s high level of industrialization, roughly one-third of its territory is covered by forest. The forestry industry provides for about two-thirds of domestic consumption of wood and wood products, so Germany is a net importer of these items. A decidous beech forest in Slovenia. ... Fishing is the activity of hunting for fish by hooking, trapping, or gathering animals not classifiable as insects which breathe in water or pass their lives in water. ...

Mining and minerals

Coal is Germany’s most important energy resource, although government policy is to reduce subsidies for coal extraction. Coal production has declined since 1989 as a result of environmental policy and the closing of inefficient mines in the former East Germany. The two main grades of coal in Germany are “hard coal” and lignite, which is also called “brown coal.”. Despite its considerable reserves, environmental restrictions have led Germany to become a net importer of coal. Also as of January 2004, proven natural gas reserves were 10.8 trillion cubic feet, the third largest in the EU. Nearly 90% of Germany’s natural gas production takes place in the state of Lower Saxony. In 2002 Germany imported 2.4 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, or 75% of its requirements. The most important source of natural gas imports is Russia, with a 40.8% share, followed by Norway at 31.5%, and the Netherlands at 22.3%. Coal Coal (IPA: ) is a fossil fuel extracted from the ground by coal mining, either underground mining or open-pit mining (surface mining). ... GDR redirects here. ... Natural gas is gaseous fossil fuel consisting primarily of methane but including significant quantities of ethane, butane, propane, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, helium and hydrogen sulfide. ... With an area of 47,618 km and nearly eight million inhabitants, Lower Saxony (German Niedersachsen) lies in north-western Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the countrys sixteen Bundesl nder (federal states). ...

Energy

In 2002 Germany was the world’s fifth largest consumer of energy, and two-thirds of its primary energy was imported. In the same year, Germany was Europe’s largest consumer of electricity; electricity consumption that year totaled 512.9 billion kilowatt-hours.

Government policy emphasizes conservation and the development of renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind, biomass, hydro, and geothermal. As a result of energy-saving measures, energy efficiency (the amount of energy required to produce a unit of gross domestic product) has been improving since the beginning of the 1970s. The government has set the goal of meeting half the country’s energy demands from renewable sources by 2050. In 2000 the government and the German nuclear power industry agreed to phase out all nuclear power plants by 2021. However, renewables currently play a more modest role in energy consumption. In 2002 energy consumption was met by the following sources: oil (40%), coal (23%), natural gas (22%), nuclear (11%), hydro (2%), and other renewables (2%). World renewable energy in 2005 (except 2004 data for items marked* or **). Enlarge image to read exclusions. ... Switchgrass, a hardy plant used in the biofuel industry in the United States Rice chaff. ... Geothermal power is electricity generated by utilizing naturally occurring geological heat sources. ... In physics and engineering, including mechanical and electrical engineering, energy efficiency is a dimensionless number, with a value between 0 and 1 or with times 100 given in percent. ... A nuclear power plant at Grafenrheinfeld, Germany. ... A nuclear power station. ...

Industry

The world's largest coherent chemistry plant near Ludwigshafen

Industry and construction accounted for 29% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2003, a comparatively large share even without taking into account related services. The sector employed 26.4% of the workforce. Germany excels in the production of automobiles, machine tools, and chemicals. With the manufacture of 5.5 million vehicles in 2003, Germany was the world’s third largest producer of automobiles after the United States and Japan, although the People's Republic of China was threatening to displace Germany in the world rankings as early as 2005. In 2004 Germany enjoyed the largest world market share in machine tools (19.3%). German-based multinationals such as Daimler-Chrysler, BMW, Bosch, BASF, Bayer, and Siemens are marquee names throughout the world. What is less well known is the vital role of small- to medium-sized manufacturing firms, which specialize in niche products and often are owned by management (see also: Mittelstand). These firms employ two-thirds of the German workforce. Image File history File links BASF1. ... Image File history File links BASF1. ... Map of Germany showing Ludwigshafen am Rhein Ludwigshafen am Rhein is a city in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany, with about 166,000 inhabitants. ... Car redirects here. ... A machine tool is a powered mechanical device, typically used to fabricate metal components of machines by the selective removal of metal. ... DaimlerChrysler AG (Xetra: DCX) , (NYSE: DCX), with headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany and Auburn Hills, Michigan, is a prominent automobile and truck manufacturer, formed in 1998 by the buyout of the Chrysler Corporation (USA) by Daimler-Benz (Germany). ... BMW AG (an initialism for Bayerische Motoren-Werke Aktiengesellschaft, or in English, Bavarian Motor Works; ISIN: DE0005190003), is an independent German company and manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles. ... The Robert Bosch GmbH is a German company which was started in 1886 by Robert Bosch. ... BASF may also historically refer to EMTEC, which was known as BASF for a short time after its founding. ... Bayer AG (German pronunciation BYE-er, in US usually pronounced BAY-er) (NYSE: BAY, TYO: 4863 ) is a German chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in 1863. ... Siemens AG (ISIN: DE0007236101, FWB: SIE, NYSE: SI) is one of the worlds largest technology companies. ... Mittelstand refers to a specific form of German company. ...

Machinery, Cars & Heavy Industry

BMW; Bosch; DaimlerChrysler; Linde; MAN; Porsche; ThyssenKrupp; Volkswagen; Audi; Liebherr BMW AG (an initialism for Bayerische Motoren-Werke Aktiengesellschaft, or in English, Bavarian Motor Works; ISIN: DE0005190003), is an independent German company and manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles. ... The Robert Bosch GmbH is a German company which was started in 1886 by Robert Bosch. ... DaimlerChrysler AG (ISIN: DE0007100000) headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA and Japan is a prominent automobile and truck manufacturer and financial services provider (through DaimlerChrysler Financial Services). ... Linde AG is an international company with three principle activity areas: industrial gases, plant engineering, and materials handling, headquartered in Wiesbaden, Germany. ... MAN AG (formerly called Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnberg AG, ISIN: DE0005937007) is a German transportation company. ... Dr. Ing. ... German industrial company ThyssenKrupp AG, with about 200,000 employees, mainly operates in the steel industry, but also in the automotive, industrial construction, and shipbuilding areas, as well as manufacturing lifts and providing other technologies and services. ... Volkswagen AG (ISIN: DE0007664005), or VW, is an automobile manufacturer based in Wolfsburg, Germany. ... Audi AG is a German automobile manufacturer with headquarters in Ingolstadt, Bavaria, and has been an almost wholly owned (99. ... The Liebherr Group is a German manufacturer established in 1949 by Hans Liebherr. ...

High Tech & Fine Mechanics

Deutsche Telekom; SAP; Siemens; Infineon [[Images:Bonn DTAG2. ... SAP AG (ISIN: DE0007164600, FWB: SAP, NYSE: SAP) is the largest European software enterprise, with headquarters in Walldorf, Germany. ... Siemens AG (ISIN: DE0007236101, FWB: SIE, NYSE: SI) is one of the worlds largest technology companies. ... Infineon Technologies is a German manufacturer of integrated circuits and related products. ...

Chemical Industry & Pharmaceuticals

BASF; Bayer; Beiersdorf; Boehringer-Ingelheim; Degussa; Henkel; Merck BASF may also historically refer to EMTEC, which was known as BASF for a short time after its founding. ... Bayer AG (German pronunciation BYE-er, in US usually pronounced BAY-er) (NYSE: BAY, TYO: 4863 ) is a German chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in 1863. ... Beiersdorf AG (FWB: BEI) is a multinational corporation based in Hamburg, Germany, manufacturing personal care products. ... Boehringer Ingelheim is a global pharmaceutical company based in Germany. ... Degussa Logo Degussa AG is a multinational chemistry corporation based in Düsseldorf, Germany. ... The Henkel Group is headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. ... Merck KGaA is a German based pharmaceutical company. ...

Service sector

In 2003 services constituted 70% of gross domestic product (GDP), and the sector employed 71.3% of the workforce. The subcomponents of services are financial, renting, and business activities (30.5%); trade, hotels and restaurants, and transport (18%); and other service activities (21.7%).

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Germany

Domestic and international tourism generates about 8% of gross domestic product (GDP) and 2.8 million jobs. Following commerce, tourism is the second largest component of the services sector. In 2004 Germany registered 45 million overnight stays by international tourists, 9% higher than in the previous year and an all-time record. Two-thirds of all major trade fairs are held in Germany, and each year they attract 9 to 10 million business travelers, about 20% of whom are foreigners. The four most important trade fairs take place in Hanover, Frankfurt, Cologne, and Düsseldorf. Germany’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup in 2006 presents an opportunity for the tourism sector. The Federal Republic of Germany has a prospering tourism industry. ... Tourists at Oahu island, Hawaii Tourism is the act of travel for predominantly recreational or leisure purposes, and also refers to the provision of services in support of this act. ... The FIFA World Cup Trophy, which has been awarded to the world champions since 1974. ... For the video game by EA see 2006 FIFA World Cup (video game). ...

Financial Services

By tradition, Germany’s financial system is bank-oriented rather than stock market-oriented. The process of disintermediation, whereby businesses and individuals arrange financing by directly accessing the financial markets versus seeking loans from banks acting as intermediaries, has not fully taken hold in Germany. One of the reasons that banks are so important in German finance is that they have never been subject to a legal separation of commercial and investment banking. Instead, under a system known as universal banking, banks have offered a wide range of services from lending to securities trading to insurance. Another reason for the strong influence of banks is that there is no prohibition of interlocking ownership between banks and their client companies. However, in January 2002 the government moved to discourage this practice and promote more rational capital allocation by eliminating the capital gains tax on the sale of corporate holdings from one company to another. In economics a financial market is a mechanism that allows people to easily buy and sell (trade) financial securities (such as stocks and bonds), commodities (such as precious metals or agricultural goods), and other fungible items of value at low transaction costs and at prices that reflect efficient markets. ... Investment banks help companies and governments and their agencies to raise money by issuing and selling securities in the primary market. ... Insurance, in law and economics, is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent loss. ... A capital gains tax (abbreviated: CGT) is a tax charged on capital gains, the profit realized on the sale of an asset that was purchased at a lower price. ...

At the end of 2000, 2,713 out of 2,931 German financial institutions (92.6%) were universal banks, including 354 commercial banks, 1,798 credit cooperatives, and 561 savings banks. The non-universal banks specialized in such activities as mortgage banking and investments. The list of the six largest German banks illustrates the diversity of bank structure and ownership. Of the top six banks, ranked by total assets as of year-end 2002, four are private, but the fifth largest is public, and the sixth largest is a cooperative.

Despite the central role of banks in finance, stock markets are competing for influence. The Deutsche Börse (German stock exchange), a private corporation, is responsible for managing Germany’s eight stock markets, by far the largest of which is the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, which handles 90% of all securities trading in Germany. The leading stock index on the Frankfurt exchange is the DAX, which, like the New York Stock Exchange’s Dow Jones Industrial Average, is composed of 30 blue-chip companies. The other German stock exchanges are located in Berlin, Bremen, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, and Stuttgart. Xetra is Germany’s electronic trading platform. As of the end of 2004, the total market capitalization of the German stock markets was nearly US$1.1 trillion, representing about 45% of gross domestic product (GDP). The shares of some 684 companies trade on the exchanges. Deutsche Börse Group LSE: DHE is a marketplace organizer for the trading of shares and other securities. ... The Frankfurt Stock Exchange (outside) The DAX chart (inside) The Frankfurt Stock Exchange (German: FWB® Frankfurter Wertpapierbörse) is a stock exchange located in Frankfurt, Germany. ... DAX 30 chart in the Frankfurt Stock Exchange DAX 30 (Deutsche Aktien Xchange 30, former Deutscher Aktien-Index 30) is a Blue Chip stock market index consisting of the 30 major German companies trading on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. ... The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), nicknamed the Big Board, is a New York City-based stock exchange privately-owned by the NYSE Group (NYX). ... The Dow Jones Industrial Average (NYSE: DJI, also called the DJIA, Dow 30, or informally the Dow industrials or The Dow) is one of several stock market indices created by Wall Street Journal editor and Dow Jones & Company co-founder Charles Dow. ... Berlin is the capital city and one of the sixteen states of the Federal Republic of Germany. ... This article is about the city in Germany. ... Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and (together with Cologne and the Ruhr Area) the economic center of Western Germany. ... Hamburg from above Hamburgs motto: May the posterity endeavour with dignity to conserve the freedom, which the forefathers acquired. ... Hanover (German: Hannover ( ) []), on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen), Germany. ... Munich (German: , pronounced  ) is the capital of the German Federal State of Bavaria (German: ). Munich is Germanys third largest city and one of Europes most prosperous and expensive. ... City Center seen from Weinsteige Road Stuttgart Palace Square - New Palace Solitude Palace The 1956 TV Tower U.S. Army Kelley Barracks Stuttgart [], located in southern Germany, is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg with a population of 591,528 (as of April 2006) in the city... XETRA or Xetra can refer to multiple things: An electronic trading system developed by Deutsche Börse, Xetra (trading system) A Mexican radio station, XETRA (radio station) This is a disambiguation page, a list of pages that otherwise might share the same title. ...

Media & Advertising

The German TV market is divided into two parts: On the one hand the public standalone station ZDF and a network of publicly-funded television stations, broadcasting several regional and specialised channels as well as the cooperated ARD programme, and on the other hand a large number of private television stations, mainly RTL (owned by Bertelsmann), Sat.1 and Pro7. Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen (Second German Television), ZDF, is a public service German television channel based in Mainz. ... Current logo ARD (Arbeitsgemeinschaft der öffentlich-rechtlichen Rundfunkanstalten der Bundesrepublik Deutschland – the Consortium of public-law broadcasting institutions of the Federal Republic of Germany), is a joint organization of Germanys regional public broadcasting agencies. ... RTL Television (formerly RTL plus) is Germanys biggest commercial television company. ... Bertelsmann AG is a transnational media corporation founded in 1835, based in Gütersloh, Germany. ... Sat. ... ProSieben is a commercial television channel in Germany. ...

Bild is Europe's best-selling newspaper, dominating the German tabloid market. The most important subscription newspapers are Süddeutsche Zeitung and Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, important news magazines are Der Spiegel and Stern. The Bild-Zeitung (lit. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The Süddeutsche Zeitung is a leading German quality newspaper. ... Publishing house in Frankfurt am Main The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ) is an influential high-quality national German newspaper, founded in 1949. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Stern (English Star) is a weekly news magazine published in Germany. ...

Trade

Port of Hamburg

In 2003 Germany conducted slightly more than half of its trade within the then 15-member EU, followed by, in order of volume, developing countries, Eastern Europe (including countries like Poland that subsequently joined the EU), the United States and Canada, non-EU Europe (Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein, and Iceland), and Japan. Increasing emphasis is being placed on trade with Russia and the People's Republic of China. The 2005 Hanover trade fair devoted much of its attention to Germany’s growing economic and trade ties to Russia, particularly in the area of energy. Germany is Russia’s top trade partner. In 2002, the People's Republic of China overtook Japan as Germany’s top trade partner in Asia, and Germany is investing h heavily in that rapidly rising economic power. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1550x1162, 256 KB) picture by uploader File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1550x1162, 256 KB) picture by uploader File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Landungsbrücken (“Jetties”), in St. ... Regions of Europe as delineated by the United Nations (UN definition of Eastern Europe marked salmon):  Northern Europe  Western Europe  Eastern Europe  Southern Europe Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium...

German trade is consistent with the policy of the European Union (EU) to expand trade among the 25 member states and also with the goal of global trade liberalization through the latest Doha Round of the World Trade Organization (WTO). Germany uses its position as the world’s leading merchandise exporter — a fact that partially reflects the strength of the euro — to compensate for subdued domestic demand. German companies derive one-third of their revenues from foreign trade. Therefore, Germany is committed to reducing trade restrictions, whether involving tariffs or non-tariff barriers, and improving the transparency of foreign markets, including access to public works projects. The Doha Development Round of World Trade Organization negotiations aims to lower trade barriers around the world, permitting free trade between countries of varying prosperity. ... WTO redirects here. ... International trade is defined as trade between two or more partners from different countries (an exporter and an importer). ... A tariff is a tax placed on imported and/or exported goods, sometimes called a customs duty. ...

The United States is Germany's second-largest trading partner after France. Two-way trade in goods totalled $88 billion in 2000. German exports to the USA totaled $58.7 billion while US imports to Germany were $29.2 billion. Germany's main exports to the USA include motor vehicles, machinery, chemicals, and heavy electrical equipment, while imports from the USA included aircraft, electrical, telecommunications and data processing equipment, and motor vehicles and parts. An Airbus A380, currently the worlds largest passenger airliner An aircraft is any vehicle or craft capable of atmospheric flight. ...

Exports and imports

In 2003 Germany imported US$601.4 billion of merchandise, while imports of goods and services totaled US$773.4 billion. Principal merchandise imports were motor vehicles (US$64.4 billion), chemical products (US$63.2 billion), machinery (US$41.8 billion), oil and gas (US$39.9 billion), and computers (US$30.5 billion). Germany’s main import partners were France (9.0%), the Netherlands (7.8%), the United States (7.3%), Italy (6.1%), the United Kingdom (6.1%), Belgium (4.9%), China (3.8%), and Austria (3.8%).

In 2003 Germany exported US$748.4 billion of merchandise, while exports of goods and services totaled US$873.3 billion. Principal merchandise exports were motor vehicles (US$145.5 billion), machinery (US$103.0 billion), chemical products (US$92.9 billion), electrical devices (US$36.2 billion), and telecommunications technology (US$35.1 billion). Germany’s main export partners were France (10.6%), the United States (9.3%), the United Kingdom (8.4%), Italy (7.4%), the Netherlands (6.2%), Austria (5.3%), Belgium (5.0%), and Spain (4.9%).

Germany's main exports:

• Machinery
• Vehicles
• Chemicals
• Metals and Manufactures
• Foodstuffs
• Consumer electronics
• Textiles
• Beer

Germany's main imports are: Wind turbines The scientific definition of a machine is any device that transmits or modifies energy. ... Karl Benzs Velo (vélo means bicycle in French) model (1894) - entered into the first automobile race 2005 MINI Cooper S. An automobile (also motor car or simply car) is a wheeled passenger vehicle that carries its own motor. ... Water and steam are two different forms of the same chemical substance A chemical substance is any material with a definite chemical composition, no matter where it comes from. ... Hot metal work from a blacksmith In chemistry, a metal (Greek: Metallon) is an element that readily loses electrons to form positive ions (cations) and has metallic bonds between metal atoms. ... Manufacturing, a branch of industry which accounts for about one-quarter of the worlds economic activity, is the application of tools and a processing medium to the transformation of raw materials into finished goods for sale. ... The food industry is the complex, global collective of diverse businesses that together supply much of the food energy consumed by the world population. ... Consumer electronics is electronic equipment intended for use by everyday people. ... Sunday textile market on the sidewalks of Karachi, Pakistan. ... A selection of bottled beers A selection of cask beers Beer is the worlds oldest[1] and most popular[2] alcoholic beverage, selling more than 133 billion litres (35 billion gallons) per year - producing total global revenues of $331. ...

• Machinery
• Vehicles
• Chemicals
• Foodstuffs
• Textiles
• Metals

CIA Factbook 2005 A machine is any mechanical or electrical device that transmits or modifies energy to perform or assist in the performance of tasks. ... The Trikke is a Human Powered Vehicle (HPV) This article is about the means of transport. ... Chemical tanks in Lillebonne, France Chemical industry includes those industries involved in the production of petrochemicals, agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals, polymers, paints, oleochemicals etc. ... Foodstuffs is a New Zealand co-operative grocery distributer and franchiser for its three supermarket brands - New World, Pakn Save and 4 Square. ... This article is about the type of fabric. ... Hot metal work from a blacksmith In chemistry, a metal (Greek: Metallon) is an element that readily loses electrons to form positive ions (cations) and has metallic bonds between metal atoms. ...

Balance of payments and currency

In 2003 the current account balance was a positive US$54.9 billion, or 2.2% of gross domestic product. In 2003 Germany posted a merchandise trade surplus of US$147 billion. In 2002 total public debt was about US$1.5 trillion, or 60.8% of gross domestic product. Balance of trade figures are the sum of the money gained by a given economy by selling exports, minus the cost of buying imports. ...

Germany’s currency is the euro. Because Germany has adopted the euro, the Bundesbank, which had been responsible for conducting monetary policy and maintaining a stable German mark, has ceded much of its previous influence to the European Central Bank. For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation) or EUR (disambiguation). ... The Deutsche Bundesbank is the central bank of Germany and a part of the European System of Central Banks. ... Monetary policy is the government or central bank process of managing money supply to achieve specific goals—such as constraining inflation, maintaining an exchange rate, achieving full employment or economic growth. ... ISO 4217 Code DEM User(s) Germany, Montenegro, Kosovo ERM Since 13 March 1979 Fixed rate since 31 December 1998 Replaced by €, non cash 1 January 1999 Replaced by €, cash 1 January 2002 € = 1. ... Headquarters Frankfurt, Germany Established 1 January 1998 President Jean-Claude Trichet Central Bank of Austria, Belgium, France, Finland, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain Currency Euro -ISO 4217 Code EUR Reserves >€4 billion Base borrowing rate 4. ...

Foreign Investment

In 2003 net foreign direct investment was inbound US$11 billion. Foreign direct investment (FDI) is defined as a long-term investment by a foreign direct investor in an enterprise resident in an economy other than that in which the foreign direct investor is based. ...

Investments

Germany follows a liberal policy toward foreign investment. During the period 1998-99, France was the largest source of direct investment, followed by the United Kingdom and the United States (18%). From 1995 to 1999, annual average flows of U.S. direct investment in Germany were $3.4 billion, while those of German investors in the United States reached $21 billion. In terms of cumulative position (historical cost basis), German investment in the United States was valued at $111 billion in 1999, having more than doubled since 1995, while U.S. investment in Germany was worth just under $50 billion, having grown 12% since 1995. Liberalism is an ideology, philosophical view, and political tradition which holds that liberty is the primary political value. ...

Despite persistence of structural rigidities in the labour market and extensive government regulation, the economy remains strong and internationally competitive, not least because of its highly skilled work force. Although production costs are high, Germany is still an export powerhouse. Additionally, Germany is strategically placed to take advantage of the rapidly growing central European countries. The current government has addressed some of the country's structural problems, with important tax, social security, and financial-sector reforms. In the future, Germany faces further fundamental (and perhaps even more sweeping) economic adjustments to boost growth and job creation. Social security primarily refers to a field of social welfare concerned with social protection, or protection against socially recognized conditions, including poverty, old age, disability, unemployment, families with children and others. ...

Labour force

The distribution of Germany’s workforce by sector is very similar to the relative output of each sector. In 2004 the workforce was distributed as follows: agriculture, 2.2%; industry, 26.4%; and services, 71.3%. Participants in the workforce totaled 38.87 million. In March 2005, Germany’s seasonally adjusted national unemployment rate increased to 12%, or nearly 5.2 million people. Both statistics represented post-war records. Unemployment approached 20% in some states in the East, where high wages are not matched by productivity. However, by September 2005 overall unemployment had declined to 11.2%, or 4.65 million people. Germany's national unemployment rate is only partially comparable to unemployment rates in the United Kingdom or United States, because it includes a significant share of part-timers, who work less than 15 hours a week. Everyone working less than 15 hours a week, who is seeking and available for a job with full social security insurance (normally full-time job or part-time above 15 hours a week), can be registered as unemployed. Around one quarter of Germany's national unemployment are underemployed part-timers.

Additionally the percentage of so called "long-term sick" in Germany is significantly lower than in the United Kingdom, Sweden or the United States, countries with very low official unemployment rates. Financial support for sickness in these countries normally lasts longer, is easier to reach or is higher than aid for unemployment. Experts believe that many of these "long-term sick" are in reality discouraged workers, who have no perspective in the job market. Most of these people in Germany are registered as unemployed, because unemployment aid is not limited in duration and being "sick" is not more lucrative. As a labour market performance index and for the actually situation on the German labour market, the German job index BA-X has been established in early 2007. ... The German Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit - BA) promotes since january 2007 the labour market index BA-X. The BA has developed a new job barometer that will be published on a monthly basis with immediate effect. ...

At the start of 2005, the seasonally adjusted number of registered unemployed persons initially showed another sharp increase. The considerable rise in the unemployment figures is largely due to the fact that former recipients of income support who now receive the new class-II unemployment benefit are registered as unemployed. This means that people who used to be numbered among the latent manpower reserve are now shown as registered unemployed persons. In particular, the labour-market statistics now include more unemployed young, older and low-skilled people.

Other statistics

Investment (gross fixed): 17.6% of GDP (2004)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

• lowest 10%: 3.6%
• highest 10%: 25.1% (1997)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 28.3 (2000) The Gini coefficient is a measure of inequality developed by the Italian statistician Corrado Gini and published in his 1912 paper Variabilità e mutabilità. It is usually used to measure income inequality, but can be used to measure any form of uneven distribution. ...

Agriculture - products: potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry

Industrial production growth rate: 2.2% (2004 est.)

Electricity:

• production: 560 TWh (2003)
• consumption: 519.5 TWh (2003)
• exports: 53.8 TWh (2003)
• imports: 45.8 TWh (2003)

Electricity - production by source: The terawatt hour (TW·h) is a unit for measuring energy. ...

• fossil fuel: 61.8%
• hydro: 4.2%
• other: 4.1% (2001)
• nuclear: 29.9%

Oil:

• production: 74,100 barrel/day (2003)
• consumption: 2.891 million barrel/day (2003)
• exports: 12,990 barrel/day (2003)
• imports: 2.135 million barrel/day (2003)
• proved reserves: 395.8 million barrel (1 January 2004)

Natural gas: January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

• production: 21 billion m³ (2003)
• consumption: 99.55 billion m³ (2003)
• exports: 7.731 billion m³ (2003)
• imports: 85.02 billion m³ (2003)
• proved reserves: 293 billion m³ (1 January 2004)

Private financial assets: €4.07 trillion (2004) January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold: $96.84 billion (2003)

Debt - external: NA

Economic aid - donor: ODA, $5.6 billion (1998)

Exchange rates:

• Euro:

July 2005: 1.20 USD = 1 EUR

January 2000: 0.99 USD = 1 EUR

1999: 0.94 USD = 1 EUR

• Deutsche Mark:

January 1999 1 USD = 1.69 DEM

1998 1 USD = 1.76 DEM

1997 1 USD = 1.73 DEM

1996 1 USD = 1.50 DEM

1995 1 USD = 1.43 DEM

The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation) or EUR (disambiguation). ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation) or EUR (disambiguation). ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... For other uses, see Euro (disambiguation) or EUR (disambiguation). ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... ISO 4217 Code DEM User(s) Germany, Montenegro, Kosovo ERM Since 13 March 1979 Fixed rate since 31 December 1998 Replaced by €, non cash 1 January 1999 Replaced by €, cash 1 January 2002 € = 1. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... ISO 4217 Code DEM User(s) Germany, Montenegro, Kosovo ERM Since 13 March 1979 Fixed rate since 31 December 1998 Replaced by €, non cash 1 January 1999 Replaced by €, cash 1 January 2002 € = 1. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... ISO 4217 Code DEM User(s) Germany, Montenegro, Kosovo ERM Since 13 March 1979 Fixed rate since 31 December 1998 Replaced by €, non cash 1 January 1999 Replaced by €, cash 1 January 2002 € = 1. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... ISO 4217 Code DEM User(s) Germany, Montenegro, Kosovo ERM Since 13 March 1979 Fixed rate since 31 December 1998 Replaced by €, non cash 1 January 1999 Replaced by €, cash 1 January 2002 € = 1. ... The United States dollar is the official currency of the United States. ... ISO 4217 Code DEM User(s) Germany, Montenegro, Kosovo ERM Since 13 March 1979 Fixed rate since 31 December 1998 Replaced by €, non cash 1 January 1999 Replaced by €, cash 1 January 2002 € = 1. ...

See also

Germany Portal

• German model
• Trade unions in Germany
• Taxation in Germany
• Common Agricultural Policy
• Economy of Europe
• Great power - Germany

Image File history File links Portal. ... The Volkswagen factory in Wolfsburg The term German model is most often used in economics to describe post-World War II West Germanys means of using (according to University College London Professor Wendy Carlin) innovative industrial relations, vocational training, and closer relationships between the financial and industrial sectors to... Trade unions have a long history in Germany, reaching back to the German revolution in 1848, and still play an important role in German economy and society. ... Taxation is one of the most criticized matters in Germany. ... The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is a system of European Union agricultural subsidies and programmes. ... The economy of Europe is comprised of more than 665 million people in 48 different states. ... One of the hallmarks of contemporary Great power status is permanent membership on the United Nations Security Council. ...

References

• This article contains material from the Library of Congress Country Studies, which are United States government publications in the public domain. - Germany

The Country Studies are works published by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress ( USA), freely available for use by researchers. ... The U.S. Constitution, adopted in 1789 by a constitutional convention, sets down the basic framework of American government in its seven articles. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

External links

• Is the US a Good Model for Reducing Social Exclusion in Europe? August 2006
• OECD's Germany country Web site and OECD Economic Survey of Germany
• Federal Statistical Office Germany
• MySME Information for foreign SMEs in Germany (In English)
• German Embassy (Washington, D.C.), Economic Trends
• Germany and the Future of the Transatlantic Economy, Policy Bulletin by the Atlantic Council of the U.S.
• Germany’s growth performance in the 1990’s - Published by the European Commission and in particular dealing with the influence of the reunification on German growth rates
• GDP Growth - Germany - euroekonom.com

v • d • e

European Union members and candidates

Members
Austria · Belgium · Bulgaria · Cyprus · Czech Republic · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France · Germany · Greece · Hungary · Ireland · Italy · Latvia · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Malta · Netherlands · Poland · Portugal · Romania · Slovakia · Slovenia · Spain · Sweden · United Kingdom The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive body of the European Union. ... Image File history File links European_flag. ... Motto: In varietate concordia 2 Anthem: Ode to Joy 3 Commission seat Brussels Official languages 23 Member states 27 Presidencies  - Commission José Manuel Barroso  - Parliament Hans-Gert Pöttering  - Council Frank-Walter Steinmeier  - European Council Germany Formation    - Treaty of Rome 25 March 1957   - Maastricht Treaty 7 February 1992  Area  - Total... The European Union (EU) was created by six founding states in 1958 (following the earlier establishment by the same six states of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952) and has grown to 27 member states. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1360x1245, 71 KB) Map of the European Union with (1) member states after the 2004 enlargement, (2) candidates (2007), (3) Turkey, Croatia and FYR Macedonia who became candidates in 2005, (4) at left (some of) the territories of France, Portugal and...

Candidates
Croatia · Republic of Macedonia¹ · Turkey For an explanation of terms related to Macedonia, see Macedonia (terminology). ...

Potential candidates
Albania · Bosnia and Herzegovina · Montenegro · Serbia Anthem: Oj, svijetla majska zoro Oh, the bright dawn of May Montenegro() on the European continent()  —  [] Capital (and largest city)  Podgorica Official languages Serbian (Ijekavian dialect)1 Government Republic  - President Filip Vujanović  - Prime Minister Željko Å turanović Independence from Serbia and Montenegro   - Declared June 3, 2006   - Recognised June 8, 2006  Area... Anthem: Serbia() on the European continent() Capital (and largest city)  Belgrade Official languages Serbian written with the Cyrillic alphabet1 Government Parliamentary republic  - President Boris Tadić  - Prime Minister Vojislav KoÅ¡tunica Establishment  - Formation 8th century   - Independence c. ...

¹ Referred to by the EU as the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia

v • d • e

World Trade Organization (WTO)

Albania • Angola • Antigua and Barbuda • Argentina • Armenia • Australia • Bahrain, Kingdom of • Bangladesh • Barbados • Belize • Benin • Bolivia • Botswana • Brazil • Brunei Darussalam • Burkina Faso • Burundi • Cambodia • Cameroon • Canada • Central African Republic • Chad • Chile • China • Colombia • Congo • Costa Rica • Cote d'Ivoire • Croatia • Cuba • Democratic Republic of the Congo • Djibouti • Dominica • Dominican Republic • Ecuador • Egypt • El Salvador • European Communities¹ • Fiji • Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) • Gabon • The Gambia • Georgia • Ghana • Grenada • Guatemala • Guinea • Guinea Bissau • Guyana • Haiti • Honduras • Hong Kong, China • Iceland • India • Indonesia • Israel • Jamaica • Japan • Jordan • Kenya • Korea, Republic of • Kuwait • Kyrgyz Republic • Lesotho • Liechtenstein • Macao, China • Madagascar • Malawi • Malaysia • Maldives • Mali • Mauritania • Mauritius • Mexico • Moldova • Mongolia • Morocco • Mozambique • Myanmar • Namibia • Nepal • New Zealand • Nicaragua • Niger • Nigeria • Norway • Oman • Pakistan • Panama • Papua New Guinea • Paraguay • Peru • Philippines • Qatar • Rwanda • Saint Kitts and Nevis • Saint Lucia • Saint Vincent & the Grenadines • Saudi Arabia • Senegal • Sierra Leone • Singapore • Solomon Islands • South Africa • Sri Lanka • Suriname • Swaziland • Switzerland • Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, and Matsu • Tanzania • Thailand • Togo • Trinidad and Tobago • Tunisia • Turkey • Uganda • United Arab Emirates • United States of America • Uruguay • Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of) • Vietnam • Zambia • Zimbabwe

¹ All twenty-seven member states of the European Union are also members of the WTO in their own right:
Austria • Belgium • Bulgaria • Cyprus • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia • Finland • France • Germany • Greece • Hungary • Ireland • Italy • Latvia • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Malta • Netherlands (— For the Kingdom in Europe and for the Netherlands Antilles) • Poland • Portugal • Romania • Slovakia • Slovenia • Spain • Sweden • United Kingdom WTO redirects here. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1357x628, 17 KB)World map of World Trade Organization (WTO) members/non-members, 2005; based on Image:BlankMap-World-v2. ... Economy - overview: Antigua and Barbudas economy is service-based, with tourism and government services representing the key sources of employment and income. ... According to the 2006 Index of Economic Freedom published by the Heritage Foundation and the Wall Street Journal, Bahrain has the most free economy in the Middle East and is twenty-fifth overall in the world. ... The Asian financial crisis in 1997 and 1998, coupled with fluctuations in the price of oil have created uncertainty and instability in Bruneis economy. ... Burkina Faso is one of the poorest countries in the world with an average income per capita of €250 (US$300). ... Economy - overview: The Central African Republic is classified as one of the worlds least developed countries, with an annual per capita income of $310 (2000). ... Costa Ricas basically stable economy depends on tourism, agriculture, and electronics exports. ... The Ivorian economy is largely market based and depends heavily on the agricultural sector. ... Sparsely populated in relation to its area, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is home to a vast potential of natural resources and mineral wealth, yet the economy of the DROC has declined drastically since the mid-1980s. ... The Dominican Republic is a middle-income developing country primarily dependent on agriculture, trade, and services, especially tourism. ... // Overview The Salvadoran economy continues to benefit from a commitment to free markets and careful fiscal management. ... In 2006, the European Union is the biggest economy in the world with 30,30% of GDP (World Bank, Total GDP 2005). ... Economy - overview: The breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991 deprived F.Y.R.O.M. (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia), then its poorest republic (only 5% of the total federal output of goods and services), of its key protected markets and large transfer payments from the center. ... Economy - overview: The Gambia has no important mineral or other natural resources and has a limited agricultural base. ... Economy - overview: Guinea-Bissau is among the worlds least developed nations and one of the 20 poorest countries in the world, and depends mainly on agriculture and fishing. ... Other Hong Kong topics Culture - Education Geography - History - Politics Hong Kong Portal The economy of Hong Kong is widely believed to be the economically freest in the world. ... Currency 1 South Korean Won (W) = 100 Jeon(Chŏn) (theoretical) Fiscal year Calendar year Trade organizations APEC, WTO and OECD Statistics [1] GDP ranking 10th by volume (at nominal) (2005); 11th by volume (at PPP) (2006); GDP (Nominal) $801. ... The economy of Kyrgyzstan was severely affected by the collapse of the Soviet trading block. ... The economy of Macau is based largely on tourism (including gambling) and textile and fireworks manufacturing. ... // Economic Profile Since 1984 the government of New Zealand has accomplished major economic restructuring, moving an agrarian economy dependent on concessionary British market access toward a more industrialized, free market economy that can compete globally. ... Overview Papua New Guinea is richly endowed with natural resources, but exploitation has been hampered by the rugged terrain and the high cost of developing infrastructure. ... Saint Kitts and Nevis was the last sugar monoculture in the Eastern Caribbean. ... Saint Lucias economy depends primarily on revenue from banana production and tourism with some input from small-scale manufacturing. ... The St. ... Economy - overview: Saudi Arabia has an oil-based economy with strong government controls over major economic activities. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require rewriting and/or reformatting. ... A per capita GDP of $340 ranks Solomon Islands as a lesser developed nation. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require rewriting and/or reformatting. ... // With an economy of $80. ... Dr. Sun Yat-Sen decorates a 100NT bill. ... Trinidad and Tobago experienced a real growth rate of 3. ... Prior to the first exports of oil in 1962, the United Arab Emirates economy was dominated by pearl production, fishing, agriculture, and herding. ... The United States has the largest national economy in the world, with a GDP for 2006 of 13. ... The economy of Venezuela is still based on oil, although efforts have been made to develop heavy industry, e. ... The Netherlands has a prosperous and open economy, which depends heavily on foreign trade. ...