Country name

conventional long form: Republic of Singapore
conventional short form: Singapore

Government type

parliamentary republic

Capital

Singapore

Administrative divisions

none

National holiday

Independence Day, 9 August (1965)

Suffrage

21 years of age; universal and compulsory

Location

Southeastern Asia, islands between Malaysia and Indonesia

Geographic coordinates

1 22 N, 103 48 E

Map references

Southeast Asia

Area

total: 692.7 sq km
water: 10 sq km
land: 682.7 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly more than 3.5 times the size of Washington, DC

Land boundaries

0 km

Coastline

193 km

Maritime claims - as described in UNCLOS 1982 (see Notes and Definitions)

territorial sea: 3 NM
exclusive fishing zone: within and beyond territorial sea, as defined in treaties and practice

Climate

tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons - Northeastern monsoon from December to March and Southwestern monsoon from June to September; inter-monsoon - frequent afternoon and early evening thunderstorms

Terrain

lowland; gently undulating central plateau contains water catchment area and nature preserve

Elevation extremes

lowest point: Singapore Strait 0 m
highest point: Bukit Timah 166 m

Natural resources

fish, deepwater ports

Land use

arable land: 1.64%
permanent crops: 0%
other: 98.36% (1998 est.)

GDP

purchasing power parity - $120.9 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

8.1% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $27,800 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 0% negligible
industry: 32.6%
services: 67.4% (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

manufacturing 18%
construction 6%
transportation and communication 11%
financial, business, and other services 49%
other 16% (2003)

Industries

electronics, chemicals, financial services, oil drilling equipment, petroleum refining, rubber processing and rubber products, processed food and beverages, ship repair, offshore platform construction, life sciences, entrepot trade

Agriculture - products

rubber, copra, fruit, orchids, vegetables, poultry, eggs, fish, ornamental fish

Exports

$174 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities

machinery and equipment (including electronics), consumer goods, chemicals, mineral fuels

Exports - partners

Malaysia 15.2%, US 13%, Hong Kong 9.8%, China 8.6%, Japan 6.4%, Taiwan 4.6%, Thailand 4.3%, South Korea 4.1% (2004)

Imports

$155.2 billion (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities

machinery and equipment, mineral fuels, chemicals, foodstuffs

Imports - partners

Malaysia 15.3%, US 12.7%, Japan 11.7%, China 9.9%, Taiwan 5.7%, South Korea 4.3%, Thailand 4.1% (2004)

Currency

Singapore dollar (SGD)

Currency code

SGD

Exchange rates

Singapore dollars per US dollar - 1.6902 (2004), 1.7422 (2003), 1.7906 (2002), 1.7917 (2001), 1.724 (2000)

Fiscal year

1 April - 31 March