1988 Edition

Boundary disputes

none; maritime dispute with Indonesia; territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian Antarctic Territory)

none; South Tyrol question with Italy

Climate

generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north

temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers

tropical marine; moderated by warm waters of Gulf Stream

Coastline

25,760 km

3,542 km

Comparative area

almost as large as conterminous US

slightly smaller than Maine

about the size of Connecticut

Contiguous zone

12 nm

Continental shelf

200 meters or to depth of exploitation

200 meters or to depth of exploitation

Environment

subject to severe droughts and floods; cyclones along coast; limited freshwater availability; irrigated soil degradation; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as the doctor occurs along west coast in summer; desertification

due to steep slopes, poor soils, and cold temperatures, population is concentrated on eastern lowlands

subject to hurricanes and other tropical storms; archipelago of about 700 islands and keys

Ethnic divisions

96% Caucasian, 4% Asian, Aboriginal, and other

Exclusive fishing zone

200 nm

200 nm

Infant mortality rate

10/1,000 (1983)

Labor force

7.6 million (November 1986); 26.9 manufacturing and industry; 22.4 public and community services; 20.0 wholesale and retail trade; 18.1 finance and services; 6.0% agriculture; 8.2% unemployment (January 1987)

Land boundaries

2,582 km total

Land use

6% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 58% meadows and pastures; 14% forest and woodland; 22% other; includes NEGL% irrigated

17% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 24% meadows and pastures; 39% forest and woodland; 19% other; includes NEGL% irrigated

1% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; NEGL% meadows and pastures; 32% forest and woodland; 67% other

Language

English, native languages

Life expectancy

men 72.1, women 78.7 (1983)

Literacy

98.5%

Nationality

noun — Australian(s); adjective— Australian

Organized labor

62% of total employees (1986)

Population

16,072,986 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 1.21%

Religion

26.1% Anglican, 26.0% Roman Catholic, 24.3% other Christian

Special notes

world's smallest continent but sixth largest country

landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys

strategic location adjacent to US and Cuba

Terrain

mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast

mostly mountains with Alps in west and south; low local relief and gentle slopes along eastern and northern margins

long, flat, coral formations with some low, rounded hills

Territorial sea

3 nm

3 nm

Total area

7,686,850 km2; land area: 7,617,930 km2

83,850 km2; land area: 82,730 km2

13,940 km2; land area: 10,070 km2

Ethnic divisions

99.4% German, 0.3% Croatian, 0.2% Slovene, 0.1% other

85% black, 15% white

Infant mortality rate

16/1,000 (1983)

20.20/1,000 (1984)

Labor force

2.9 million (est. 1985); 41.10% industry and crafts, 57.55% services, 1.35% agriculture and forestry; 4.8% unemployed (est. 1985); an estimated 200,000 Austrians are employed in other European countries; foreign laborers in Austria number 138,700, about 5.4% of labor force (1984)

82,000 (1982); 30% government, 25% hotels and restaurants, 10% business services, 5% agriculture; 30% unemployment (1983)

Language

German

English; some Creole among Haitian immigrants

Life expectancy

73

men 64, women 70

Literacy

98%

89%

Nationality

noun — Austrian(s); adjective — Austrian Austria (continued)

noun — Bahamian(s); adjective— Bahamian

Organized labor

1,672,820 members of Austrian Trade Union Federation (1984)

25% of labor force

Population

7,569,283 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 0.09%

238,817 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 1.75%

Religion

88% Roman Catholic, 6% Protestant, 6% none or other

Baptist 29%, Anglican 23%, Boman Catholic 22%, smaller groups of other Protestants, Greek Orthodox, and Jews

Administrative divisions

6 states and 2 territories

9 states (lander)

Branches

bicameral legislature (Federal Parliament — Senate and House of Representatives); Prime Minister and Cabinet responsible to House; independent judiciary

bicameral legislature (Federal Assembly — Federal Council, National Council), directly elected President whose functions are largely representational, independent federal judiciary

Capital

Canberra

Vienna

Communists

4,000 members (est.)

membership 15,000 est.; activists 7,000-8,000

Dependent areas

Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island

Elections

held at three-year intervals or sooner if Parliament is dissolved by Prime Minister; last election 1 December 1984 Political parties and leaders: government— Australian Labor Party (Robert Hawke); opposition — Liberal Party (John Howard), National Party (Ian Sinclair), Australian Democratic Party (Janine Haines), Nuclear Disarmament Party (Michael Denborough)

presidential, every six years (next 1992); parliamentary, every four years (next 1990) Political parties and leaders: Socialist Party of Austria (SPO), Fred Sinowatz, chairman; Austrian People's Party (OVP), Alois Mock, chairman; Freedom Party of Austria (FPO), Jorg Haider, chairman; Communist Party (KPO), Franz Muhri, chairman; Green Alternative List (GAL), Freda Meissner-Blau

Government leaders

Sir Ninian STEPHEN, Governor General (since July 1982); Robert HAWKE, Prime Minister (since March 1983)

Kurt WALDHEIM, President (since July 1986); Franz VRANITZKY, Chancellor (since June 1986)

Legal system

based on English common law; constitution adopted 1900; High Court has jurisdiction over cases involving interpretation of the constitution; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

civil law system with Roman law origin; constitution adopted 1920, repromulgated 1945; judicial review of legislative acts by a Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Member of

ADB, AIOEC, ANZUS, CIPEC (associate), Colombo Plan, Commonwealth, DAC, ELDO, ESCAP, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IATP, IBA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOOC, IPU, IRC, ISO, ITC, ITU, IWC — International Whaling Commission, IWC — International Wheat Council, OECD, SPF, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG „

ADB, Council of Europe, DAC, ECE, EFTA, EMA, ESRO (observer), FAO, GATT, IAEA, IDE— InterAmerican Development Bank, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, ITU, IWC — International Wheat Council, OECD, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, WSG

National holiday

Australia Day, 26 January

26 October

Official name

Commonwealth of Australia

Republic of Austria

The Commonwealth of

Other political or pressure groups

Australian Democratic Labor Party (antiCommunist Labor Party splinter group); Peace and Nuclear Disarmament Action (Nuclear Disarmament Party splinter group)

Federal Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Austrian Trade Union Federation (primarily Socialist); three composite leagues of the Austrian People's Party (OVP) representing business, labor, and farmers; OVPoriented League of Austrian Industrialists; Roman Catholic Church, including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action

Suffrage

universal and compulsory over age 18

universal over age 19; compulsory for presidential elections

Type

federal parliamentary state recognizing Elizabeth II as sovereign or head of state

federal republic

Voting strength

(1984 parliamentary election) House of Representatives — Labor Party 82 seats, Liberal-National coalition 66 seats; Senate — Labor Party 34 seats, Liberal-National coalition 33 seats, Australian Democratic Party 7 seats, independents 2 seats

1986 parliamentary election— SPO 43.1%, OVP 41.3%, FPO 9.7%, GAL 4.8%, KPO .7%, other .32%; 1986 presidential election— {53.9% of 4.7 million votes cast) SPO 80 seats, OVP 77 seats, FPO 18 seats, GAL 8 seats

Agriculture

large areas devoted to grazing; 60% of area used for crops is planted in wheat; major products — wool, lamb, beef, wheat, fruits, sugarcane; selfsufficient in food

livestock, forest products, cereals, potatoes, sugar beets; 84% selfsufficient

Aid

donor — ODA and OOF economic aid commitments (1970-84), $7 billion

donor — ODA and OOF economic aid commitments (1970-84), $1.4 billion

Budget

(FY86-87 proj.) expenditures, $49.3 billion; revenues, $47.0 billion; deficit, $2.3 billion

expenditures, $22.10 billion; revenues, $18.80 billion; deficit, $3.3 billion (1986)

Crude steel

6.6 million metric tons produced, 420 kg per capita (1985)

5.3 million metric tons produced (1984)

Electric power

34,616,000 kW capacity; 125,000 million kWh produced, 7,810 kWh per capita (1986)

15,846,000 kW capacity; 46,460 million kWh produced, 6,160 kWh per capita (1986)

Exports

$22.9 billion (f.o.b., 1985); principal products — wheat, barley, beef, lamb, dairy products, wool, coal, iron ore

$17.1 billion (f.o.b., 1985); iron and steel products, machinery and equipment, lumber, textiles, paper products, chemicals

Fiscal year

1 July-30 June

calendar year

GDP

$153.0 billion (1985), $9,760 per capita; 60% private consumption, 22% investment, 17.1% government expenditure; 1.25% average annual real growth rate (1986); inflation rate 8.9% (October 1986) Austria

$66.26 billion, $8,888 per capita; 57% private consumption, 22% investment, 19% public consumption; real GNP growth rate, 2.9%; 3.3% inflation rate (1985)

Imports

$26.0 billion (c.i.f., 1985) principal products — manufactured raw materials, capital equipment, consumer goods

$20.8 billion (c.i.f, 1984); machinery and equipment, chemicals, textiles and clothing, petroleum, foodstuffs, vehicles, office machines, Pharmaceuticals

Major industries

mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals

foods, iron and steel, machinery, textiles, chemicals, electrical, paper and pulp

Major trade partners

(1983-84) exports — 26% Japan, 11% US, 6% New Zealand, 4% North Korea, 4% Singapore, 3% USSR; imports— 22% US, 22% Japan, 7% UK, 6% FRG, 4% New Zealand

(1984) imports — 41% FRG, 8.2% Italy, 7.3% East Europe (excluding USSR), 4.5% Switzerland, 4.4% USSR, 3.7% US; exports— 30.1% FRG, 9.6% East Europe (excluding USSR), 9.0% Italy, 6.7% Switzerland, 6.0% OPEC, 4.7% US

Monetary conversion rate

1.55 Australian dollars=US$l (14 January 1987)

14.26 schillings=US$l (November 1986)

Natural resources

bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, oil

iron ore, petroleum, timber, magnesite, aluminum, coal, lignite, cement, copper

Airfields

1,014 total, 973 usable; 228 with permanent-surface runways, 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 20 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 486 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

56 total, 54 usable; 19 with permanent-surface runways; 5 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 5 with runways 1,220-2,439 m The Bahamas

Branches

Royal Australian Navy, Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Force

Army, Flying Division

Civil air

around 150 major transport aircraft

25 major transport aircraft

Highways

837,872 km total; 243,750 km paved, 228,396 km gravel, crushed stone, or stabilized soil surface, 365,726 km unimproved earth

95,412 km total; 34,612 are the classified network (including 1,012 km of autobahn, 10,400 km of federal, and 23,200 km of provincial roads); of this number, 21,812 km are paved and 12,800 km are unpaved; additionally, there are 60,800 km of communal roads (mostly gravel, crushed stone, earth)

Inland waterways

8,368 km; mainly by small, shallow-draft craft

446 km

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 30 June 1986, $4.6 billion; about 9.9% of total central government budget 150km Seert|ionil map V

for fiscal year ending 31 December 1986, $1.13 billion; about 4.2% of the proposed federal budget 200km Great Inagua See refionil map III

Military manpower

males 15-49, 4,317,000; 3,792,000 fit for military service; 137,000 reach military age (17) annually

males 15-49, 1,964,000; 1,655,000 fit for military service; 57,000 reach military age (19) annually

Pipelines

crude oil, 2,475 km; refined products, 500 km; natural gas, 5,600 km

554 km crude oil; 2,61 1 km natural gas; 171 km refined products

Ports

12 major, numerous minor

2 major river (Vienna, Linz)

Railroads

40,661 km total (1985); 7,970 km 1.600-meter gauge, 16,201 km 1.435meter standard gauge, 16,307 km 1.067meter gauge; 183 km dual gauge; 1,130 km electrified; government owned (except for a few hundred kilometers of privately owned track)

6,497 km total; 5.857 km government owned; 5,403 km 1.435-meter standard gauge of which 3,017 km electrified and 1,520 km double tracked; 454 km 0.760-meter narrow gauge of which 91 km electrified; 640 km privately owned 1.435and 1.000-meter gauge

Telecommunications

very good international and domestic service; 8.7 million telephones (55 per 100 popl.); 258 AM, 67 FM, 134 TV stations; 3 international earth satellite stations; submarine cables to New Zealand and Papua New Guinea; domestic satellite service Defense Forces

highly developed and efficient; extensive TV and radiobroadcast systems with 6 AM, 693 FM, 910 TV stations; 1 INTELSAT (for Atlantic and Indian regions); 3.72 million telephones (45.9 per 100 popl.) Defense Forces