Country Facts - United Kingdom

The People

Ethnic Composition

English	81.5%
Scottish	9.6%
Irish	2.4%
Welsh	1.9%
Ulster	1.8%
West Indian, Indian, Pakistani, and Other	2.8%

Religious Composition

Anglican	45.9%
Roman Catholic	15.3%
Other Protestant	2.7%
Muslim	1.7%
Sikh & Hindu	1.3%
Other	1.0%

Note: Figures are inconclusive because the U.K. does not include a religion question on its census form...

Nationality

Briton(s), British (collective plural)

Languages Spoken

English, Welsh, and Scottish Gaelic

Education and Literacy

Education is compulsory for 12 years and attendance is nearly 100 percent. The literacy rate is 99 percent for citizens over 15 years of age.

Labor Force

Total: 29.7 million (2001)
By occupation:

Services	74%
Industry	25%
Agriculture	1%

Geography

Land Mass Total

94,525 sq mi (244,820 sq km)
Note: Includes Rockall and Shetland Islands.

Land

93,278 sq mi (241,590 sq km)

Water

1,247 sq mi (3,230 sq km)

Land Boundaries

Total: 223 mi (360 km)

Border countries: Ireland 223 mi (360 km)

Coastline

7,723 mi (12,429 km)

Maritime claim

Continental shelf: As defined in continental shelf orders or in accordance with agreed upon boundaries
Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate/Weather

Temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest winds over the North Atlantic Current; more than half of the days are overcast.

Terrain

Mostly rugged hills and low mountains; level to rolling plains in east and southeast.

Elevation extremes

Lowest: Fenland 13 ft (4 m)
Highest: Ben Nevis 4,406 ft (1,343 m)

Natural Resources

Coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land

Land use

Arable land	26%
Permanent crops	0%
Other	74%

(1998)

Natural hazards

Winter windstorms, floods

Environment - current issues

Continues to reduce greenhouse gas emissions (has met Kyoto Protocol target of a 12.5% reduction from 1990 levels and intends to meet the legally binding target and move towards a domestic goal of a 20% cut in emissions by 2010); by 2005 the Government aims to reduce the amount of industrial and commercial waste disposed of in landfill sites to 85% of 1998 levels and to recycle or compost at least 25% of household waste, increasing to 33% by 2015; between 1998-99 and 1999-2000, household recycling increased from 8.8% to 10.3%.

Geography Note

lies near vital North Atlantic sea lanes; only 21 mi (35 km) from France and now linked by tunnel under the English Channel; because of heavily indented coastline, no location is more than 77 mi (125 km) from tidal waters

Demographics

Population

59,778,002 (July 2002)

Age structure

0-14 years:	18.7%	Male: 5,732,385	Female: 5,443,900
15-64 years:	65.5%	Male: 19,803,478	Female: 19,381,734
65 years and over:	15.8%	Male: 3,931,463	Female: 5,485,042

(2002))

Growth Rate

0.21% (2002)

Life Expectancy

77.99 years (2002)
Female: 80.84 years
Male: 75.29 years

GDP Per Capita

Purchasing power parity
US$24,700 (2001)

Infant Mortality

5.45 deaths/1,000 live births (2002)

Sex ratio

At birth:	1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15 years:	1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:	1.02 male(s)/female
65 years and over:	0.72 male(s)/female
Total population:	0.97 male(s)/female

(2002)

Net migration rate

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

Economy & Trade

The U.K., a leading trading power and financial center, is one of the quartet of trillion dollar economies of Western Europe. Over the past two decades the government has greatly reduced public ownership and contained the growth of social welfare programs. Agriculture is intensive, highly mechanized, and efficient by European standards, producing about 60 percent of food needs with only 1% of the labor force. The U.K. has large coal, natural gas, and oil reserves; primary energy production accounts for 10 percent of GDP, one of the highest shares of any industrial nation. Services, particularly banking, insurance, and business services, account by far for the largest proportion of GDP while industry continues to decline in importance. GDP growth slipped in 2001 as the global downturn, the high value of the pound, and the bursting of the "new economy" bubble hurt manufacturing and exports. Still, the economy is one of the strongest in Europe; inflation, interest rates, and unemployment remain low, and the government expects growth of 2 percent to 2.5 percent in 2002. The relatively good economic performance has complicated the BLAIR government's efforts to make a case for Britain to join the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). The Prime Minister has pledged to hold a public referendum if membership meets Chancellor of the Exchequer Brown's five economic "tests." Scheduled for assessment by mid-2003, the tests will determine whether joining EMU would have a positive effect on British investment, employment, and growth. Critics point out, however, that the economy is thriving outside of EMU, and they point to public opinion polls that continue to show a majority of Britons opposed to the single currency. GDP growth was only 1.6 percent in 2002 but is scheduled to move to 2.2 percent in 2003 and 2.4 percent in 2004. The U.K. has sharp imbalances wherein the service sector is slowing, but remains stronger than the depressed manufacturing sector. Consumer spending continues to expand faster than total GDP, though public spending is now one of the economy's main growth engines. The latter has dangerous implications for long-term productivity and enterprise. Investment has weakened and in many sectors has registered very large drops. British exports have declined, while the external deficit is set to expand sharply in 2003. Enthusiasm for taking on the euro waxes and wanes depending upon domestic, rather than regional, issues.

Unemployment

5.1% (2001)

Inflation Rate

1.8% (2001)

Industries

Machine tools, electric power equipment, automation equipment, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, aircraft, motor vehicles and parts, electronics and communications equipment, metals, chemicals, coal, petroleum, paper and paper products, food processing, textiles, clothing, and other consumer goods

Exports

US$287 billion (f.o.b., 2001)

Imports

US$337 billion (c.i.f., 2001)

Total Trade

Purchasing power parity
GDP US$1.47 trillion (2001)

Top Export Partners

EU 54% (Germany 11%, France 9%, Netherlands 7%, Ireland 7%), US 15% (2000)

Top Import Partners

EU 48% (Germany 11%, France 7%, Netherlands 6%), US 13%, Japan 5% (2000)

Top Exports

Manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, chemicals, foods, beverages, tobacco

Top Imports

Manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, foodstuffs

Debt - external

N/A

Economic aid

Donor: ODA, $4.5 billion (2000)

Fiscal Year:

April 1 to March 31

Business Workweek

	Monday - Friday	Saturday - Sunday
Offices	9a.m. to 5p.m.	Closed
Retail	9a.m. to 7p.m.	Slightly shorter hours on the weekend.
Banks	9:30a.m. to 3:30p.m.	Saturday morning hours in some locations.
Government	9:30a.m. to 3:30p.m.	Closed

Holidays

Official Holidays

Holidays	2003	2004	2005
New Year's Day	January 1	January 1	January 1
Bank Holiday (Scotland only)	January 2	January 2	January 2
St. Patrick's Day (N. Ireland)	March 17	March 17	March 17
Good Friday	April 18	April 9	March 25
Easter¹	April 18	April 11	March 27
Easter Monday	April 18	April 12	March 28
May Day Bank Holiday²	May 6	May 3	May 2
Bank Holiday³	May 26	May 31	May 30
Battle of the Boyne (N. Ireland)	July 12	July 12	July 12
Bank Holiday (Scotland only)*¹	August 4	August 2	August 1
Bank Holiday (except Scotland)*²	August 25	August 30	August 29
Christmas Day*³	December 25	December 25	December 25
Boxing Day, St. Stephen's Day	December 26	December 26	December 26
New Year's Eve	December 30	December 30	December 30

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	First Monday in May.
³	Last Monday in May.
*¹	First Monday in August.
*²	Last Monday in August.
*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