| Country name: |
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia
conventional short
form: Australia |
| Government
type: | democratic,
federal-state system recognizing the British monarch as sovereign |
| Capital: |
Canberra |
| Administrative
divisions: |
6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern
Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
|
| National
holiday: | Australia
Day, 26 January (1788) |
|
Suffrage: |
18 years of age; universal and compulsory |
| Location: |
Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean |
| Geographic coordinates: |
27 00 S, 133 00 E |
| Map
references: |
Oceania
|
| Area: |
total: 7,686,850 sq km
water: 68,920 sq km
note:
includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
land: 7,617,930 sq km
|
| Area -
comparative: |
slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states |
|
Land boundaries: |
0 km |
| Coastline: |
25,760 km |
| Maritime
claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions): |
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200 NM or to the edge
of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
contiguous
zone: 24 NM |
| Climate: |
generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north |
| Terrain: |
mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast |
|
Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
highest point: Mount Kosciuszko
2,229 m |
| Natural
resources: |
bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten,
mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum |
|
Land use: |
arable land: 6.88%
permanent crops: 0.03%
other:
93.09% (1998 est.) |
| GDP: | purchasing
power parity - $611.7 billion (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - real growth rate: | 3.5%
(2004 est.) |
| GDP
- per capita: |
purchasing power parity - $30,700 (2004 est.) |
|
GDP - composition by sector: |
agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 28.2%
services: 68.4% (2004 est.) |
| Labor force - by
occupation: |
agriculture 3.6%
industry 26.4%
services 70% (2004 est.). |
| Industries: |
mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel
|
| Agriculture
- products: |
wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry |
|
Exports: | $86.89
billion (2004 est.) $86.89 billion (2004 est.) |
|
Exports - commodities: | coal,
gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
|
| Exports
- partners: | Japan
18.6%, China 9.2%, US 8.1%, South Korea 7.7%, New Zealand 7.4%, India 4.6%, UK
4.2% (2004) |
| Imports: |
$98.1 billion (2004 est.) |
|
Imports - commodities: | machinery
and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment
and parts; crude oil and petroleum products |
|
Imports - partners: |
US 14.8%, China 12.7%, Japan 11.8%, Germany 5.8%, Singapore 4.4%, UK 4.1% (2004)
|
| Currency: |
Australian dollar (AUD) |
|
Currency code: | AUD
|
| Exchange
rates: |
Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.3598 (2004), 1.5419 (2003), 1.8406 (2002),
1.9334 (2001), 1.7248 (2000) |
|
Fiscal year: |
1 July - 30 June |
