The World Population: 7,503,828,180

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 History
Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology, from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased concerns about environmental degradation including deforestation, energy and water shortages, declining biological diversity, and air pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820 to 2 billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in 1987, 6 billion in 1999, and 7 billion in 2012. For the 21st century, the continued exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes (e.g., advances in medicine and agriculture) and fears (e.g., development of even more lethal weapons of war).

 Geography
    The world is now thought to be about 4.55 billion years old, just about one-third of the 13.8-billion-year age estimated for the universe

  • although earthquakes can strike anywhere at any time, the vast majority occur in three large zones of the earth; the world's greatest earthquake belt, the Circum-Pacific Belt (popularly referred to as the Ring of Fire), is the zone of active volcanoes and earthquake epicenters bordering the Pacific Ocean; about 90% of the world's earthquakes (81% of the largest earthquakes) and some 75% of the world's volcanoes occur within the Ring of Fire; the belt extends northward from Chile, along the South American coast, through Central America, Mexico, the western US, southern Alaska and the Aleutian Islands, to Japan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, island groups in the southwestern Pacific, and New Zealand the second prominent belt, the Alpide, extends from Java to Sumatra, northward along the mountains of Burma, then eastward through the Himalayas, the Mediterranean, and out into the Atlantic Ocean; it accounts for about 17% of the world's largest earthquakes; the third important belt follows the long Mid-Atlantic Ridge
Area: total: 510.072 million sq km
land: 148.94 million sq km
water: 361.132 million sq km

note: 70.9% of the world's surface is water, 29.1% is land

Size comparison: land area about 16 times the size of the US
Land Boundaries: the land boundaries in the world total 251,060 km (not counting shared boundaries twice); two nations, China and Russia, each border 14 other countries note: 46 nations and other areas are landlocked, these include: Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czechia, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, South Sudan, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe; two of these, Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan, are doubly landlocked
Coastline: 356,000 km note: 95 nations and other entities are islands that border no other countries, they include: American Samoa, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Ashmore and Cartier Islands, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Baker Island, Barbados, Bermuda, Bouvet Island, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cabo Verde, Cayman Islands, Christmas Island, Clipperton Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Comoros, Cook Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Cyprus, Dominica, Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), Faroe Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Greenland, Grenada, Guam, Guernsey, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Howland Island, Iceland, Isle of Man, Jamaica, Jan Mayen, Japan, Jarvis Island, Jersey, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Kiribati, Madagascar, Maldives, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mayotte, Federated States of Micronesia, Midway Islands, Montserrat, Nauru, Navassa Island, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Palmyra Atoll, Paracel Islands, Philippines, Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Seychelles, Singapore, Sint Maarten, Solomon Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, Spratly Islands, Sri Lanka, Svalbard, Taiwan, Tokelau, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Virgin Islands, Wake Island, Wallis and Futuna
Maritime claims: a variety of situations exist, but in general, most countries make the following claims measured from the mean low-tide baseline as described in the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea: territorial sea - 12 nm, contiguous zone - 24 nm, and exclusive economic zone - 200 nm; additional zones provide for exploitation of continental shelf resources and an exclusive fishing zone; boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 nm
Climate: a wide equatorial band of hot and humid tropical climates, bordered north and south by subtropical temperate zones that separate two large areas of cold and dry polar climates Ten Driest Places on Earth (Average Annual Precipitation): McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica 0 mm (0 in) Arica, Chile 0.76 mm (0.03 in) Al Kufrah, Libya 0.86 mm (0.03 in) Aswan, Egypt 0.86 mm (0.03 in) Luxor, Egypt 0.86 mm (0.03 in) Ica, Peru 2.29 mm (0.09 in) Wadi Halfa, Sudan 2.45 mm (0.1 in) Iquique, Chile 5.08 mm (0.2 in) Pelican Point, Namibia 8.13 mm (0.32 in) El Arab (Aoulef), Algeria 12.19 mm (0.48 in) Ten Wettest Places on Earth (Average Annual Precipitation): Mawsynram, India 11,871 mm (467.4 in) Cherrapunji, India 11,777 mm (463.7 in) Tutunendo, Colombia 11,770 mm (463.4 in) Cropp River, New Zealand 11,516 mm (453.4 in) San Antonia de Ureca, Equatorial Guinea 10,450 mm (411.4 in) Debundsha, Cameroon 10,299 mm (405.5 in) Big Bog, US (Hawaii) 10,272 mm (404.4 in) Mt Waialeale, US (Hawaii) 9,763 mm (384.4 in) Kukui, US (Hawaii) 9,293 mm (365.9 in) Emeishan, China 8,169 mm (321.6 in) Ten Coldest Places on Earth (Lowest Average Monthly Temperature): Verkhoyansk, Russia (Siberia) -47°C (-53°F) January Oymyakon, Russia (Siberia) -46°C (-52°F) January Eureka, Canada -38.4°C (-37.1°F) February Isachsen, Canada -36°C (-32.8°F) February Alert, Canada -34°C (-28°F) February Kap Morris Jesup, Greenland -34°C (-29°F) March Cornwallis Island, Canada -33.5°C (-28.3°F) February Cambridge Bay, Canada -33.5°C (28.3°F) February Ilirnej, Russia -33°C (-28°F) January Resolute, Canada -33°C (-27.4°F) February Ten Hottest Places on Earth (Highest Average Monthly Temperature): Death Valley, US (California) 39°C (101°F) July Iranshahr, Iran 38.3°C (100.9°F) June Ouallene, Algeria 38°C (100.4°F) July Kuwait City, Kuwait 37.7°C (100°F) July Medina, Saudi Arabia 36°C (97°F) July Buckeye, US (Arizona) 34°C (93°F) July Jazan, Saudi Arabia 33°C (91°F) June Al Kufrah, Libya 31°C (87°F) July Alice Springs, Australia 29°C (84°F) January Tamanrasset, Algeria 29°C (84°F) June
Terrain: tremendous variation of terrain on each of the continents; check the World 'Elevation' entry for a compilation of terrain extremes; the world's ocean floors are marked by mid-ocean ridges while the ocean surfaces form a dynamic, continuously changing environment; check the 'Terrain' field and its 'major surface currents' subfield under each of the five ocean (Arctic, Atlantic, Indian, Pacific, and Southern) entries for further information on oceanic environs Ten Cave Superlatives: compiled from "Geography - note(s)" under various country entries where more details may be found largest cave: Son Doong in Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park, Vietnam is the world's largest cave (greatest cross sectional area) and is the largest known cave passage in the world by volume; it currently measures a total of 38.5 million cu m (about 1.35 billion cu ft); it connects to Thung cave (but not yet officially); when recognized, it will add an additional 1.6 million cu m in volume largest ice cave: the Eisriesenwelt (Ice Giants World) inside the Hochkogel mountain near Werfen, Austria is the world's largest and longest ice cave system at 42 km (26 mi) longest cave: Mammoth Cave, in west-central Kentucky, is the world's longest known cave system with more than 650 km (405 mi) of surveyed passageways longest salt cave: the Malham Cave in Mount Sodom in Israel is the world's longest salt cave at 10 km (6 mi); its survey is not complete and its length will undoubtedly increase longest underwater cave: the Sac Actun cave system in Mexico at 348 km (216 mi) is the longest underwater cave in the world and the second longest cave worldwide longest lava tube cave: Kazumura Cave on the island of Hawaii is the world's longest and deepest lava tube cave; it has been surveyed at 66 km (41 mi) long and 1,102 m (3,614 ft) deep deepest cave: Veryovkina Cave in the Caucasus country of Georgia is the world's deepest cave, plunging down 2,212 m (7,257 ft) deepest underwater cave: the Hranice Abyss in Czechia is the world's deepest surveyed underwater cave at 404 m (1,325 ft); its survey is not complete and it could end up being some 800-1,200 m deep largest cave chamber: the Miao Room in the Gebihe cave system at China's Ziyun Getu He Chuandong National Park encloses some 10.78 million cu m (380.7 million cu ft) of volume largest bat cave: Bracken Cave outside of San Antonio, Texas is the world's largest bat cave; it is the summer home to the largest colony of bats in the world; an estimated 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats roost in the cave from March to October making it the world's largest known concentration of mammals
Natural resources: the rapid depletion of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality pose serious long-term problems
Irrigated land: 3,242,917 sq km (2012 est.)
Natural hazards: large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones); natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions) volcanism: volcanism is a fundamental driver and consequence of plate tectonics, the physical process reshaping the Earth's lithosphere; the world is home to more than 1,500 potentially active volcanoes, with over 500 of these having erupted in historical times; an estimated 500 million people live near these volcanoes; associated dangers include lava flows, lahars (mudflows), pyroclastic flows, ash clouds, ash fall, ballistic projectiles, gas emissions, landslides, earthquakes, and tsunamis; in the 1990s, the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, created a list of 16 Decade Volcanoes worthy of special study because of their great potential for destruction: Avachinsky-Koryaksky (Russia), Colima (Mexico), Etna (Italy), Galeras (Colombia), Mauna Loa (United States), Merapi (Indonesia), Nyiragongo (Democratic Republic of the Congo), Rainier (United States), Sakurajima (Japan), Santa Maria (Guatemala), Santorini (Greece), Taal (Philippines), Teide (Spain), Ulawun (Papua New Guinea), Unzen (Japan), Vesuvius (Italy); see second note under "Geography - note"
Current Environment Issues: large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of biodiversity; soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion; ozone layer depletion; waste disposal; global warming becoming a greater concern
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 People
Languages: Mandarin Chinese 12.3%, Spanish 6%, English 5.1%, Arabic 5.1%, Hindi 3.5%, Bengali 3.3%, Portuguese 3%, Russian 2.1%, Japanese 1.7%, Punjabi, Western 1.3%, Javanese 1.1% (2018 est.) note 1: percents are for "first language" speakers only; the six UN languages - Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), English, French, Russian, and Spanish (Castilian) - are the mother tongue or second language of about 45% of the world's population, and are the official languages in more than half the states in the world; some 400 languages have more than a million first-language speakers note 2: all told, there are an estimated 7,100 languages spoken in the world; approximately 80% of these languages are spoken by less than 100,000 people; about 150 languages are spoken by less than 10 people; communities that are isolated from each other in mountainous regions often develop multiple languages; Papua New Guinea, for example, boasts about 840 separate languages note 3: approximately 2,300 languages are spoken in Asia, 2,140, in Africa, 1,310 in the Pacific, 1,060 in the Americas, and 290 in Europe (2018)
Religions: Christian 31.4%, Muslim 23.2%, Hindu 15%, Buddhist 7.1%, folk religions 5.9%, Jewish 0.2%, other 0.8%, unaffiliated 16.4%
Population: 7,503,828,180 (2018 est.) top ten most populous countries (in millions): China 1379.3; India 1281.93; United States 326.63; Indonesia 260.58; Brazil 207.35; Pakistan 204.92; Nigeria 190.63; Bangladesh 157.83; Russia 142.26; Japan 126.45; ten least populous countries: Holy See (Vatican City) 1,000; Montserrat 5,292; Saint Pierre and Miquelon 5,533; Saint Barthelemy 7,184; Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan de Cunha 7,828; Cook Islands 9,290; Tuvalu 11,052; Nauru 11,359; Wallis and Futuna 15,714; Anguilla 17,087; ten most densely populated countries (population per sq km): Macau 21,346; Monaco 15,322; Singapore 8,572; Hong Kong 6,702; Gaza Strip 4,987; Gibraltar 4,523; Bahrain 1,857; Maldives 1,318; Malta 1,317; Bermuda 1,312; ten least densely populated countries (population per sq km): Greenland less than 1; Mongolia 2; Western Sahara 2.3; Australia 3; Namibia 3; Iceland 3.4; Mauritania 3.6; Guyana 3.7; Libya 3.8; Suriname 3.8
Age structure: 0-14 years: 25.29% (male 981,129,427/female 916,864,766)
15-24 years: 15.77% (male 611,245,863/female 572,115,168)
25-54 years: 41.03% (male 1,559,197,242/female 1,519,386,627)
55-64 years: 8.84% (male 324,134,030/female 339,551,038)
65 years and over: 9.06% (male 303,788,086/female 376,415,933) (2018 est.)
Dependency ratios: total dependency ratio: 52.5 (2015 est.)
youth dependency ratio: 39.9 (2015 est.)
elderly dependency ratio: 12.6 (2015 est.)
potential support ratio: 7.9 (2015 est.)
Median age: total: 30.6 years
male: 29.9 years
female: 31.4 years (2018 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.05% (2018 est.) note: this rate results in about 149 net additions to the worldwide population every minute or 2.5 every second
Birth rate: 18.2 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) note: this rate results in about 259 worldwide births per minute or 4.3 births every second
Death rate: 7.7 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.) note: this rate results in about 108 worldwide deaths per minute or 1.8 deaths every second
Urbanization: urban population: 55.3% of total population (2017)
rate of urbanization: 1.9% annual rate of change (2017) ten largest urban agglomerations: Tokyo (Japan) - 38,241,000; New Delhi (India) - 27,197,000; Shanghai (China) - 25,202,000; Beijing (China) - 22,063,000; Mumbai (India) - 21,690,000; Sao Paulo (Brazil) - 21,519,000; Mexico City (Mexico) - 21,321,000; Osaka (Japan) - 20,415,000; Cairo (Egypt) - 19,486,000; Dhaka (Bangladesh) - 18,898,000 (2017)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.07 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female
total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2018 est.)
Maternal mortality rate: 216 deaths/100,000 live births (2015 est.)
Infant mortality rate: total: 32 deaths/1,000 live births male: 34 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 29.9 deaths/1,000 live births (2018 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 69.8 years male: 67.8 years
female: 72 years (2018 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.42 children born/woman (2018 est.)
Drinking water source: improved:
urban: 96.5% of population
rural: 84.7% of population
total: 91.1% of population

unimproved:
urban: 3.5% of population
rural: 15.3% of population
total: 8.9% of population (2015 est.)
Sanitation facility access: improved:
urban: 82.3% of population (2015 est.)
rural: 50.5% of population (2015 est.)
total: 67.7% of population (2015 est.)

unimproved:
urban: 17.7% of population (2015 est.)
rural: 49.5% of population (2015 est.)
total: 32.3% of population (2015 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.8% (2017 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 36.9 million (2017 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: 940,000 (2017 est.)
Education expenditures: n/a
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.2%
male: 89.8%
female: 82.6% (2016 est.) note: more than three-quarters of the world's 750 million illiterate adults are found in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa; of all the illiterate adults in the world, almost two-thirds are women (2016)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education): total: 12 years male: 12 years female: 12 years (2017)
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 Government
Administrative divisions: 195 countries, 72 dependent areas and other entities
Legal system: the legal systems of nearly all countries are generally modeled upon elements of five main types: civil law (including French law, the Napoleonic Code, Roman law, Roman-Dutch law, and Spanish law); common law (including English and US law); customary law; mixed or pluralistic law; and religious law (including Islamic law); an additional type of legal system - international law - governs the conduct of independent nations in their relationships with one another
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 Economy
The international financial crisis of 2008-09 led to the first downturn in global output since 1946 and presented the world with a major new challenge: determining what mix of fiscal and monetary policies to follow to restore growth and jobs, while keeping inflation and debt under control. Financial stabilization and stimulus programs that started in 2009-11, combined with lower tax revenues in 2009-10, required most countries to run large budget deficits. Treasuries issued new public debt - totaling $9.1 trillion since 2008 - to pay for the additional expenditures. To keep interest rates low, most central banks monetized that debt, injecting large sums of money into their economies - between December 2008 and December 2013 the global money supply increased by more than 35%. Governments are now faced with the difficult task of spurring current growth and employment without saddling their economies with so much debt that they sacrifice long-term growth and financial stability. When economic activity picks up, central banks will confront the difficult task of containing inflation without raising interest rates so high they snuff out further growth. Fiscal and monetary data for 2013 are currently available for 180 countries, which together account for 98.5% of world GDP. Of the 180 countries, 82 pursued unequivocally expansionary policies, boosting government spending while also expanding their money supply relatively rapidly - faster than the world average of 3.1%; 28 followed restrictive fiscal and monetary policies, reducing government spending and holding money growth to less than the 3.1% average; and the remaining 70 followed a mix of counterbalancing fiscal and monetary policies, either reducing government spending while accelerating money growth, or boosting spending while curtailing money growth. (For more information, see attached spreadsheet.) In 2013, for many countries the drive for fiscal austerity that began in 2011 abated. While 5 out of 6 countries slowed spending in 2012, only 1 in 2 countries slowed spending in 2013. About 1 in 3 countries actually lowered the level of their expenditures. The global growth rate for government expenditures increased from 1.6% in 2012 to 5.1% in 2013, after falling from a 10.1% growth rate in 2011. On the other hand, nearly 2 out of 3 central banks tightened monetary policy in 2013, decelerating the rate of growth of their money supply, compared with only 1 out of 3 in 2012. Roughly 1 of 4 central banks actually withdrew money from circulation, an increase from 1 out of 7 in 2012. Growth of the global money supply, as measured by the narrowly defined M1, slowed from 8.7% in 2009 and 10.4% in 2010 to 5.2% in 2011, 4.6% in 2012, and 3.1% in 2013. Several notable shifts occurred in 2013. By cutting government expenditures and expanding money supplies, the US and Canada moved against the trend in the rest of the world. France reversed course completely. Rather than reducing expenditures and money as it had in 2012, it expanded both. Germany reversed its fiscal policy, sharply expanding federal spending, while continuing to grow the money supply. South Korea shifted monetary policy into high gear, while maintaining a strongly expansionary fiscal policy. Japan, however, continued to pursue austere fiscal and monetary policies. Austere economic policies have significantly affected economic performance. The global budget deficit narrowed to roughly $2.7 trillion in 2012 and $2.1 trillion in 2013, or 3.8% and 2.5% of World GDP, respectively. But growth of the world economy slipped from 5.1% in 2010 and 3.7% in 2011, to just 3.1% in 2012, and 2.9% in 2013. Countries with expansionary fiscal and monetary policies achieved significantly higher rates of growth, higher growth of tax revenues, and greater success reducing the public debt burden than those countries that chose contractionary policies. In 2013, the 82 countries that followed a pro-growth approach achieved a median GDP growth rate of 4.7%, compared to 1.7% for the 28 countries with restrictive fiscal and monetary policies, a difference of 3 percentage points. Among the 82, China grew 7.7%, Philippines 6.8%, Malaysia 4.7%, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia 3.6%, Argentina 3.5%, South Korea 2.8%, and Russia 1.3%, while among the 28, Brazil grew 2.3%, Japan 2.0%, South Africa 2.0%, Netherlands -0.8%, Croatia -1.0%, Iran -1.5%, Portugal -1.8%, Greece -3.8%, and Cyprus -8.7%. Faster GDP growth and lower unemployment rates translated into increased tax revenues and a less cumbersome debt burden. Revenues for the 82 expansionary countries grew at a median rate of 10.7%, whereas tax revenues fell at a median rate of 6.8% for the 28 countries that chose austere economic policies. Budget balances improved for about three-quarters of the 28, but, for most, debt grew faster than GDP, and the median level of their public debt as a share of GDP increased 9.1 percentage points, to 59.2%. On the other hand, budget balances deteriorated for most of the 82 pro-growth countries, but GDP growth outpaced increases in debt, and the median level of public debt as a share of GDP increased just 1.9%, to 39.8%. The world recession has suppressed inflation rates - world inflation declined 1.0 percentage point in 2012 to about 4.1% and 0.2 percentage point to 3.9% in 2013. In 2013 the median inflation rate for the 82 pro-growth countries was 1.3 percentage points higher than that for the countries that followed more austere fiscal and monetary policies. Overall, the latter countries also improved their current account balances by shedding imports; as a result, current account balances deteriorated for most of the countries that pursued pro-growth policies. Slow growth of world income continued to hold import demand in check and crude oil prices fell. Consequently, the dollar value of world trade grew just 1.3% in 2013. Beyond the current global slowdown, the world faces several long standing economic challenges. The addition of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, waste-disposal, epidemics, water-shortages, famine, over-fishing of oceans, deforestation, desertification, and depletion of non-renewable resources. The nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, services, funds, and technology. The introduction of the euro as the common currency of much of Western Europe in January 1999, while paving the way for an integrated economic powerhouse, has created economic risks because the participating nations have varying income levels and growth rates, and hence, require a different mix of monetary and fiscal policies. Governments, especially in Western Europe, face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. Because of their own internal problems and priorities, the industrialized countries are unable to devote sufficient resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from an economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. The terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 accentuated a growing risk to global prosperity - the diversion of resources away from capital investments to counter-terrorism programs. Despite these vexing problems, the world economy also shows great promise. Technology has made possible further advances in a wide range of fields, from agriculture, to medicine, alternative energy, metallurgy, and transportation. Improved global communications have greatly reduced the costs of international trade, helping the world gain from the international division of labor, raise living standards, and reduce income disparities among nations. Much of the resilience of the world economy in the aftermath of the financial crisis resulted from government and central bank leaders around the globe working in concert to stem the financial onslaught, knowing well the lessons of past economic failures.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $127.8 trillion (2017 est.) $123.3 trillion (2016 est.) $119.5 trillion (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
GDP (official exchange rate): $80.27 trillion SGWP (gross world product) (2017 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3.7% (2017 est.) 3.2% (2016 est.) 3.3% (2014 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP): $17,500 (2017 est.) $17,000 (2016 est.) $16,800 (2015 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
Gross national saving: 27.9% of GDP (2017 est.) 27.4% of GDP (2016 est.) 27.8% of GDP (2015 est.) GDP - composition, by end use: household consumption: 56.4% (2017 est.) government consumption: 16.1% (2017 est.) investment in fixed capital: 25.7% (2017 est.) investment in inventories: 1.4% (2017 est.) exports of goods and services: 28.8% (2017 est.) imports of goods and services: -28.3% (2017 est.) GDP - composition, by sector of origin: agriculture: 6.4% (2017 est.) industry: 30% (2017 est.) services: 63% (2017 est.)
Industries: dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces; the accelerated development of new technologies is complicating already grim environmental problems
Industrial production growth rate: 3.2% (2017 est.)
Labor force: 3.432 billion (2017 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 31%
industry: 23.5%
services: 45.5% (2014 est.)
Unemployment rate: 7.7% (2017 est.) 7.5% (2016 est.) note: combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 4%-12% unemployment (2007 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 30.2% (2008 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index: 37.9 (2012 est.) 37.9 (2005 est.)
Public debt: 67.2% of GDP (2017 est.) 67.2% of GDP (2016 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 6.4% (2017 est.) 3.7% (2016 est.) developed countries: 1.9% (2017 est.) 0.9% (2016 est.) developing countries: 8.8% (2017 est.) 3.7% (2016 est.) note: the above estimates are weighted averages; inflation in developed countries is 0% to 4% typically, in developing countries, 4% to 10% typically; national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases; inflation rates have declined for most countries for the last several years, held in check by increasing international competition from several low wage countries and by soft demand due to the world financial crisis
Exports: $17.31 trillion (2017 est.) $15.82 trillion (2016 est.)
Exports - commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services top ten - share of world trade: 14.8 electrical machinery, including computers; 14.4 mineral fuels, including oil, coal, gas, and refined products; 14.2 nuclear reactors, boilers, and parts; 8.9 cars, trucks, and buses; 3.5 scientific and precision instruments; 3.4 plastics; 2.7 iron and steel; 2.6 organic chemicals; 2.6 pharmaceutical products; 1.9 diamonds, pearls, and precious stones (2007 est.)
Imports: $20.01 trillion (2018 est.) $16.02 trillion (2017 est.)
Imports - commodities: the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services top ten - share of world trade: see listing for exports
Debt - external: $76.56 trillion (31 December 2017 est.) $75.09 trillion (31 December 2016 est.) note: this figure is the sum total of all countries' external debt, both public and private
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: $33.6 trillion (31 December 2017 est.) $31.62 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: $34.73 trillion (31 December 2017 est.) $32.94 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
Market value of publicly traded shares: $67.47 trillion (31 December 2015 est.) $68.51 trillion (31 December 2014 est.) $68.37 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)
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 Energy
Electricity - production: 23.65 trillion kWh (2015 est.)
Electricity - consumption: 21.78 trillion kWh (2015 est.)
Electricity - exports: 696.1 billion kWh (2016)
Electricity - imports: 721.9 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Electricity - installed generating capacity: 6.386 billion kW (2015 est.)
Electricity - from fossil fuels: 63% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Electricity - from nuclear fuels: 6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Electricity - from hydroelectric plants: 18% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Electricity - from other renewable sources: 14% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Crude oil - production: 80.77 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Crude oil - exports: 43.57 million bbl/day (2014 est.)
Crude oil - imports: 44.58 million bbl/day (2014 est.)
Crude oil - proved reserves: 1.665 trillion bbl (1 January 2017 est.)
Refined petroleum products - production: 88.4 million bbl/day (2014 est.)
Refined petroleum products - consumption: 96.26 million bbl/day (2015 est.)
Refined petroleum products - exports: 29.66 million bbl/day (2014 est.)
Refined petroleum products - imports: 28.62 million bbl/day (2014 est.)
Natural gas - production: 3.481 trillion cu m (2015 est.)
Natural gas - consumption: 3.477 trillion cu m (2015 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 1.156 trillion cu m (2013 est.)
Natural gas - imports: 1.496 trillion cu m (2013 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves: 196.1 trillion cu m (1 January 2016 est.)
Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy: 33.62 billion Mt (2013 est.)
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 Communications
Cellular Phones in use: total subscriptions: 7,806,142,681
subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 105 (2017 est.)
Internet users: total: 3,174,000,000 (2018 est.)
percent of population: 43% top ten countries by Internet usage (in millions): 730.7 China; 374.3 India; 246.8 United States; 122.8 Brazil; 116.6 Japan; 108.8 Russia; 73.3 Mexico; 72.3 Germany; 65.5 Indonesia; 61 United Kingdom
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 Transportation
Airports: 41,820 (2016) top ten by passengers: Atlanta (ATL) - 103,902,992; Beijing (PEK) - 95,786,442; Dubai (DXB) - 88,242,099; Tokyo (HND) - 85,408,975; Los Angeles (LAX) - 84,557,968; Chicago (ORD) - 79,828,183; London (LHR) - 78,014,598; Hong Kong (HKG) 72,664,075; Shanghai (PVG) 70,001,237; Paris (CDG) - 69,471,442 (2017) top ten by cargo (metric tons): Hong Kong (HKG) - 5,049,898; Memphis, TN (MEM) - 4,336,752; Shanghai (PVG) - 3,824,280; Incheon (ICN) - 2,921,691; Anchorage, AK (ANC) - 2,713,230; Dubai (DXB) - 2,654,494; Louisville, KY (SDF) - 2,602,695; Tokyo (NRT) - 2,336,427; Taipei (TPE) - 2,269,585; Paris (CDG) - 2,195,229 (2017)
Heliports: 6,524 (2013)
Railways: total 1,148,186 km
(2013)
Roadways: total 64,285,009 km
(2013)
Waterways: 2,293,412 km (2017) top ten longest rivers: Nile (Africa) 6,693 km; Amazon (South America) 6,436 km; Mississippi-Missouri (North America) 6,238 km; Yenisey-Angara (Asia) 5,981 km; Ob-Irtysh (Asia) 5,569 km; Yangtze (Asia) 5,525 km; Yellow (Asia) 4,671 km; Amur (Asia) 4,352 km; Lena (Asia) 4,345 km; Congo (Africa) 4,344 km note: rivers are not necessarily navigable along the entire length; if measured by volume, the Amazon is the largest river in the world, responsible for about 20% of the Earth's freshwater entering the ocean top ten largest natural lakes (by surface area): Caspian Sea (Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkmenistan) 372,960 sq km; Lake Superior (Canada, United States) 82,414 sq km; Lake Victoria (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda) 69,490 sq km; Lake Huron (Canada, United States) 59,596 sq km; Lake Michigan (United States) 57,441 sq km; Lake Tanganyika (Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Tanzania, Zambia) 32,890 sq km; Great Bear Lake (Canada) 31,800 sq km; Lake Baikal (Russia) 31,494 sq km; Lake Nyasa (Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania) 30,044 sq km; Great Slave Lake (Canada) 28,400 sq km note 1: the areas of the lakes are subject to seasonal variation; only the Caspian Sea is saline, the rest are fresh water note 2: Lakes Huron and Michigan are technically a single lake because the flow of water between the Straits of Mackinac that connects the two lakes keeps their water levels at near-equilibrium; combined, Lake Huron-Michigan is the largest freshwater lake by surface area in the world
Merchant marine: total 92,647

by type: bulk carrier 11,115, container ship 5,145, general cargo 19,128, oil tanker 10,252, other 47,007 (2018)
Ports and terminals: top twenty container ports as measured by Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units (TEUs) throughput: Shanghai (China) - 40,233,000; Singapore (Singapore) - 33,666,000; Shenzhen (China) - 25,208,000; Ningbo (China) - 24,607,000; Hong Kong (China) - 20,770,000; Busan (South Korea) - 20,493,000; Guangzhou (China) - 18,858,000; Qingdao (China) - 18,262,000; Dubai (UAE) - 15,368,000; - Tianjin (China) - 15,040,000; Rotterdam (Netherlands) - 13,734,000; Port Kelang (Malaysia) - 11,978,000; Antwerp (Belgium) - 10,450,000; Xiamen (China) - 10,380,000; Kaohsiung (Taiwan) - 10,271,000; Dalian (China) - 9,707,000; Los Angeles (US) - 9,343,000; Hamburg (Germany) - 8,860,000; Tanjung Pelepas (Malaysia) - 8,260,000; Laem Chabang (Thailand) - 7,227,000 (2017)
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 Military
Military expenditures: 2.22% of GDP (2016) 2.27% of GDP (2015) 2.26% of GDP (2014) 2.3% of GDP (2013) 2.36% of GDP (2012)
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 Transnational Issues
Disputes - International: stretching over 250,000 km, the world's 325 international land boundaries separate 195 independent states and 71 dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, and other miscellaneous entities; ethnicity, culture, race, religion, and language have divided states into separate political entities as much as history, physical terrain, political fiat, or conquest, resulting in sometimes arbitrary and imposed boundaries; most maritime states have claimed limits that include territorial seas and exclusive economic zones; overlapping limits due to adjacent or opposite coasts create the potential for 430 bilateral maritime boundaries of which 209 have agreements that include contiguous and non-contiguous segments; boundary, borderland/resource, and territorial disputes vary in intensity from managed or dormant to violent or militarized; undemarcated, indefinite, porous, and unmanaged boundaries tend to encourage illegal cross-border activities, uncontrolled migration, and confrontation; territorial disputes may evolve from historical and/or cultural claims, or they may be brought on by resource competition; ethnic and cultural clashes continue to be responsible for much of the territorial fragmentation and internal displacement of the estimated 20.8 million people and cross-border displacements of approximately 12.1 million refugees and asylum seekers around the world as of mid-2013; over half a million refugees were repatriated during 2012; other sources of contention include access to water and mineral (especially hydrocarbon) resources, fisheries, and arable land; armed conflict prevails not so much between the uniformed armed forces of independent states as between stateless armed entities that detract from the sustenance and welfare of local populations, leaving the community of nations to cope with resultant refugees, hunger, disease, impoverishment, and environmental degradation
Refugees and internally displaced persons: the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated that as of year-end 2018 there were 70.8 million people forcibly displaced worldwide; this includes 25.9 million refugees, 3.5 million asylum seekers, and 41.4 million conflict IDPs; the UNHCR estimates there are currently at least 10 million stateless persons
Illicit drugs: cocaine: worldwide coca leaf cultivation in 2013 likely amounted to 165,000 hectares, assuming a stable crop in Bolivia; Colombia produced slightly less than half of the worldwide crop, followed by Peru and Bolivia; potential pure cocaine production increased 7% to 640 metric tons in 2013; Colombia conducts an aggressive coca eradication campaign, Peru has increased its eradication efforts, but remains hesitant to eradicate coca in key growing areas; opiates: worldwide illicit opium poppy cultivation increased in 2013, with potential opium production reaching 6,800 metric tons; Afghanistan is world's primary opium producer, accounting for 82% of the global supply; Southeast Asia was responsible for 12% of global opium; Pakistan produced 3% of global opium; Latin America produced 4% of global opium, and most was refined into heroin destined for the US market (2015)
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   Source: CIA - The World Factbook

 

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