Country Facts - Peru

The People

Nationality
Peruvian(s)

Ethnic Composition

Amerindian	45%
Mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white)	37%
Caucasian	15%
Black, Japanese, Chinese, other	3%

Religious Composition

Roman Catholic	90%
Other	10%

Languages Spoken

Spanish (official), Quechua (official), Aymara

Education and Literacy

Education is nominally free and compulsory; an estimated 88.3 percent of the urban population can read and write compared with 30 percent of the population living in the isolated mountainous areas. There is a national university in almost every major city but only a fraction of applicants are accepted each year.

Labor Force

Total: 7.5 million (2000)
By occupation: agriculture, mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, transport, services

Geography

Land Mass Total

496,226 sq mi (1,285,220 sq km)

Land

494,210 sq mi (1.28 million sq km)

Water

2,015 sq mi (5,220 sq km)

Land Boundaries

Total: 3,439 mi (5,536 km)
Border countries: Bolivia 559 mi (900 km), Brazil 969 mi (1,560 km), Chile 99 mi (160 km), Colombia 929 mi (1,496 km), Ecuador 882 mi (1,420 km)

Coastline

1,499 mi (2,414 km)

Maritime claim

Continental shelf: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 200 nm

Climate/Weather

Peru's climate varies from tropical in east to dry desert in west; temperate to frigid in Andes.

Terrain

Western coastal plain (costa), high and rugged Andes in center (sierra), eastern lowland jungle of Amazon Basin (selva)

Elevation extremes

Lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 ft (0 m)
Highest point: Nevado Huascaran 22,204 ft (6,768 m)

Natural Resources

Copper, silver, gold, petroleum, timber, fish, iron ore, coal, phosphate, potash, hydropower

Land use

Arable land	3%
Permanent crops	0%
Other	97%

(1998)

Natural hazards

Earthquakes, tsunamis, flooding, landslides, mild volcanic activity

Environment - current issues

Deforestation (some the result of illegal logging); overgrazing of the slopes of the costa and sierra leading to soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Lima; pollution of rivers and coastal waters from municipal and mining wastes.

Geography Note

Shares control of Lago Titicaca, world's highest navigable lake, with Bolivia; remote Lake McIntyre is the ultimate source of the Amazon River.

Demographics

Population

27,949,639 (July 2002)

Age structure

0-14 years:	34%	Male: 4,820,892	Female: 4,671,205
15-64 years:	61.1%	Male: 8,598,328	Female: 8,492,830
65 years and over:	4.9%	Male: 627,601	Female: 738,783

(2002))

Growth Rate

1.66% (2002)

Life Expectancy

70.59 years (2002)
Female: 73.12 years
Male: 68.18 years

GDP Per Capita

Purchasing power parity
US$4,800 (2001)

Infant Mortality

38.18 deaths/1,000 live births (2002)

Sex ratio

At birth:	1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15 years:	1.03 male(s)/female
15-64 years:	1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over:	0.85 male(s)/female
Total population:	1.01 male(s)/female

(2002)

Net migration rate

-1.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002)

Economy & Trade

Thanks to strong foreign investment and the cooperation between the government and the IMF and World Bank, growth was strong in 1994 to 1997 and inflation was brought under control. In 1998, El Nino's impact on agriculture, the financial crisis in Asia, and instability in Brazilian markets severely undercut growth. And 1999 was another lean year for Peru, with the aftermath of El Nino and the Asian financial crisis working its way through the economy. Political instability resulting from the presidential election and Fujimori's subsequent departure from office limited growth in 2000. The downturn in the global economy further depressed growth in 2001. President Toledo, who assumed the presidency in July 2001, is working to reinvigorate the economy and reduce unemployment. Economic growth in 2002 was just over 3 percent and a rise to 3.6 percent is predicted for 2003.is projected to be 3 to 3.5 percent. Unemployment still remains high, and the nation has an ever-growing "informal" sector that deprives the government of badly needed taxes.

Unemployment

9%; widespread underemployment (2001)

Inflation Rate

1.5% (2001)

Industries

Mining of metals, petroleum, fishing, textiles, clothing, food processing, cement, auto assembly, steel, shipbuilding, metal fabrication

Exports

US$7.3 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Imports

US$7.4 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Total Trade

Purchasing power parity
GDP US$132 billion (2001)

Top Export Partners

US 28%, UK 8%, Switzerland 8%, China 6%, Japan, Chile, Brazil (2000)

Top Import Partners

US 27%, Chile 8%, Spain 6%, Venezuela 4%, Colombia, Brazil, Japan (2000)

Top Exports

Fish and fish products, gold, copper, zinc, crude petroleum and byproducts, lead, coffee, sugar, cotton

Top Imports

Machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceuticals

Debt - external

US$33.1 billion (2001)

Economic aid

US$895.1 million (1995)

Fiscal Year:

Calendar year

Business Workweek

	Monday - Friday	Saturday - Sunday
Offices	8:30a.m. to 5p.m. Certain shops and businesses take a 3-hour siesta and open between 11a.m. and 1p.m. and 4p.m. to 8p.m.	Some businesses work on Saturday mornings.
Retail	10:30a.m. to 7:30p.m.	Slightly shorter hours on the weekend. Some stores may close between 1p.m. and 4p.m.
Banks	January through March: 8:30a.m. to 12:30p.m. April through December: 9:15a.m. to 3:30p.m.	Closed
Government	8:30a.m. to 5p.m.	Closed

Holidays

Official Holidays

Holidays	2003	2004	2005
New Year's Day	January 1	January 1	January 1
Holy Thursday¹	April 17	April 8	March 24
Good Friday	April 18	April 9	March 25
Easter²	April 20	April 11	March 27
Easter Monday	April 21	April 12	March 28
May Day	May 1	May 1	May 1
Sts. Peter and Paul	June 29	June 29	June 29
Independence Day	July 28	July 28	July 28
Independence Day Celebrations	July 29	July 29	July 29
St. Rosa of Lima	August 30	August 30	August 30
Battle of Angamos	October 8	October 8	October 8
All Saints' Day	November 1	November 1	November 1
Immaculate Conception	December 8	December 8	December 8
Christmas Day³	December 25	December 25	December 25

¹	Observed the Thursday before Easter. This feast commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, and is one of the oldest rituals of Christian Holy Week. Maundy, or Holy Thursday also marks the beginning of Passover.
²	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.
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.

Note: Travel to Peru between January and March should be avoided since most Peruvians take their vacation at this time. Also, try and avoid Easter and Christmas for business travel.

Country information used by permission of World Trade Press