Country Facts - Germany

The People

Nationality German(s) Ethnic Composition

German	91.5%
Turkish	2.4%
Other including Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Russian, Greek, Polish, Spanish	6.1%

Religious Composition

Protestant	34%
Roman Catholic	34%
Muslim	3.7%
Unaffiliated or other	28.3%

Languages Spoken

German (official); English is widely understood.

Education and Literacy

Education is compulsory for 10 years and the literacy rate stands at 99 percent of adults.

Labor Force

Total: 41.9 million (2001)

By occupation:

Services	63.8%
Industry	33.4%
Agriculture	2.8%

Geography

Land Mass Total

137,846 sq mi (357,021 sq km)

Land

134,835 sq mi (349,223 sq km)

Water

3,010 sq mi (7,798 sq km)

Land Boundaries

Total: 2,249 mi (3,621 km)

Border countries: Austria 487 mi (784 km), Belgium 103 mi (167 km), Czech Republic 401 mi (646 km), Denmark 42 mi (68 km), France 280 mi (451 km), Luxembourg 85 mi (138 km), Netherlands 358 mi (577 km), Poland 283 mi (456 km), Switzerland 207 mi (334 km).

Coastline

1,484 mi (2,389 km)

Maritime claim

Continental shelf: 656 ft (200 m) depth or to the depth of exploitation
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate/Weather

Temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm foehn wind.

Terrain

Lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south.

Elevation extremes

Lowest: Freepsum Lake 6.5 ft (2 m)
Highest: Zugspitze 9,721 ft (2,963 m)

Natural Resources

Iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land.

Land use

Arable land	34%
Permanent crops	1%
Other	65%

(1998)

Natural hazards

Flooding.

Environment - current issues

Emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution; acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests; pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal; government currently attempting to define mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power; government working to meet E.U. commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the E.U.'s Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive.

Geography Note

Strategic location on north European plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea.

Demographics

Population

83,251,851 (July 2002

)

Age structure

0-14 years:	15.4%	male 6,568,699	female 6,227,148
15-64 years:	67.6%	male 28,606,964	female 27,695,539
65 years and over:	17%	male 5,546,140	female 8,607,361

Growth Rate

0.26% (2002)

Life Expectancy

77.78 years (2002)
female: 81.09 years
male: 74.64 years

GDP Per Capita

Purchasing power parity
US$26,200 (2001)

Infant Mortality

4.65 deaths/1,000 live births (2002)

Sex ratio

At birth:	1.06 male(s)/female
Under 15 years:	1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:	1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over:	0.64 male(s)/female
Total population:	0.96 male(s)/female

Net migration rate

3.99 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002)

Economy & Trade

Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy turned in a relatively weak performance throughout much of the 1990s. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term problem, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's ageing population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Business and income tax cuts introduced in 2001 did not spare Germany from the impact of the downturn in international trade, and domestic demand faltered as unemployment began to rise. The government expected growth to gain pace in the second half of 2002, but instead found itself running a large deficit. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are addressed. The spending shortfalls were so large that Germany, once considered the master of frugal government spending, was reprimanded by the E.U. for violating the very fiscal policies Germany had insisted upon for all E.U. members. Capital flight, rigid labor policies and an aging population all point towards continued stagnation. The current left-leaning "Red Green" coalition under Schroeder is unable to confront the unions or to reform pensions without upsetting its constituency. Nor can it offer any coherent alternative to thwart Germany's rapid transformation from "Engine of Europe" into "E.U. Caboose".

Unemployment

9.4% (2001)

Inflation Rate

2.4% (2001)

Industries

Among the world's largest and technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles.

Exports

US$560.7 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Imports

US$472.9 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Total Trade

Purchasing power parity
GDP US$2.174 trillion (2001)

Top Export Partners

EU 56% (France 11%, UK 8%, Italy 8%, Netherlands 6%, Belgium/Luxembourg 5%), US 10%, Japan 2% (2000)

Top Import Partners

EU 52% (France 10%, Netherlands 9%, Italy 7%, UK 7%, Belgium/Luxembourg 5%), US 9%, Japan 5% (2000)

Top Exports

Machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles

Top Imports

Machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals

Economic aid

Donor: ODA, $5.6 billion (1998)

Fiscal Year:

Calendar year

Business Workweek

	Monday - Friday	Saturday - Sunday
Offices	8a.m. to 4p.m. Many businesses close early on Friday (see note below).	Closed
Retail	8a.m. to 7p.m. Smaller shops in nontouristed areas may close for a couple of hours around noon.	Saturday 8a.m. to 4p.m.
Banks	8:30a.m. to 1p.m. and 2:30p.m. to 4p.m. In large cities banks remain open throughout the day.	Closed
Government	8:30a.m. to 12:30p.m. and 2p.m. to 5p.m.	Closed

Note: Most shops, many banks, and some offices are open slightly longer on "long Thursday" and may permit employees to leave early on Friday to offset the time.....

Holidays

Official Holidays

Holidays	2003	2004	2005
New Year's Day	January 1	January 1	January 1
Easter¹	April 20	April 11	March 27
Easter Monday	April 21	April 12	March 28
Labor Day	May 1	May 1	May 1
Ascension²	May 29	May 20	May 6
Whit Sunday (Pentecost)³	June 8	May 30	May 15
Whit Monday	June 9	May 31	May 16
Corpus Christi*¹	June 19	June 10	May 26
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary	August 15	August 15	August 15
Day of German Unity*²	October 3	October 3	October 3
Reformation Day	October 31	October 31	October 31
All Saints' Day	November 1	November 1	November 1
Repentence Day	November 20	November 19	November 17
Christmas Eve	December 24	December 24	December 24
Christmas Day*³	December 25	December 25	December 25
New Year's Eve	December 31	December 31	December 31

¹	Easter, a Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ, is the first Sunday after the full moon and the vernal equinox (fixed in the Gregorian calendar at March 21), and often observed with Good Friday and Easter Monday. In the West, Easter is predicted using the Gregorian calendar, while Eastern Orthodox Christians use the much older Julian calendar, and celebrate 13 days later.
²	The feast of Ascension takes place 40 days after Easter in both the Christian and Orthodox faiths and celebrates the ascent of Christ into Heaven.
³	The Christian feast of Pentecost, Whit Sunday or Whit Monday takes place 50 days after Easter, in observation of the day God came to the disciples through the Holy Ghost.
*¹	Western Catholic feast commorating the Eucharist, takes place 60 days after Easter, and is typically the time when believers take their first communion.
*²	Often coinsides with Octoberfest in Bavaria.
*³	Christmas celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ. In A.D.320, Pope Julius I fixed the date at December 25 based on the Gregorian calendar. The Orthodox church calculates Christmas using the Julian calendar and celebrates 13 days later on January 7.

Country information used by permission of World Trade Press