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Austria
Background:
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Once the center of power for the
large Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic
after its defeat in World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in
1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies in 1945,
Austria's status remained unclear for a decade. A State Treaty signed in
1955 ended the occupation, recognized Austria's independence, and
forbade unification with Germany. A constitutional law that same year
declared the country's "perpetual neutrality" as a condition for Soviet
military withdrawal. The Soviet Union's collapse in 1991 and Austria's
entry into the European Union in 1995 have altered the meaning of this
neutrality. A prosperous, democratic country, Austria entered the EU
Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. In January 2009, Austria assumed a
nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2009-10 term.
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Location:
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Central Europe, north of Italy and
Slovenia
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Geographic coordinates:
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47 20 N, 13 20 E
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Map references:
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Europe
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Area:
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total: 83,871
sq km
13
land:
82,445 sq km
water:
1,426 sq km
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Area - comparative:
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slightly smaller than
Maine
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Land boundaries:
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total: 2,562
km
border countries:
Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366
km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km,
Switzerland 164 km
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Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked)
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Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked)
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Climate:
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Current Weather
temperate; continental,
cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain and some snow in lowlands and
snow in mountains; moderate summers with occasional showers
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Terrain:
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in the west and south
mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly
flat or gently sloping
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Neusiedler
See 115 m
highest point:
Grossglockner 3,798 m
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Natural resources:
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oil, coal, lignite,
timber, iron ore, copper, zinc, antimony, magnesite, tungsten, graphite,
salt, hydropower
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Land use:
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arable land: 16.59%
permanent crops:
0.85%
other:
82.56% (2005)
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Irrigated land:
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40 sq km (2003)
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Total
renewable water resources:
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84 cu km (2005)
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Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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total: 3.67
cu km/yr (35%/64%/1%)
per capita:
448 cu m/yr (1999)
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Natural hazards:
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landslides; avalanches;
earthquakes
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Environment - current issues:
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some forest degradation
caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of
agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal-
and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks
transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to: Air
Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent
Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94,
Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note:
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landlocked; strategic
location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily
traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube;
population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes,
poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere
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Population:
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8,214,160 (July 2010 est.)
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Age structure:
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0-14 years: 14.3%
(male 599,735/female 571,690)
15-64 years:
67.6% (male 2,789,503/female 2,762,789)
65 years and over:
18.1% (male 620,782/female 869,661) (2010 est.)
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Median age:
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total: 42.6
years
male:
41.5 years
female:
43.6 years (2010 est.)
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Population growth rate:
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0.042% (2010 est.)
91
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Birth rate:
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8.65 births/1,000
population (2010 est.)
15
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Death rate:
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10.05 deaths/1,000
population (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 61
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Net migration rate:
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1.83 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
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Urbanization:
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urban population: 67%
of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization:
0.7% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
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Sex ratio:
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at birth: 1.051
male(s)/female
under 15 years:
1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years:
1.01 male(s)/female
65 years and over:
0.71 male(s)/female
total population:
0.95 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
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Infant mortality rate:
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total: 4.37
deaths/1,000 live births
00
male:
5.31 deaths/1,000 live births
female:
3.38 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total population: 79.65
years
8
male:
76.74 years
female:
82.71 years (2010 est.)
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Total fertility rate:
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1.39 children born/woman
(2010 est.)
99
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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0.2% (2007 est.)
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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
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9,800 (2007 est.)
05
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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
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fewer than 100 (2003
est.)
28
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Nationality:
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noun: Austrian(s)
adjective:
Austrian
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Ethnic groups:
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Austrians 91.1%, former
Yugoslavs 4% (includes Croatians, Slovenes, Serbs, and Bosniaks), Turks
1.6%, German 0.9%, other or unspecified 2.4% (2001 census)
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Religions:
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Roman Catholic 73.6%,
Protestant 4.7%, Muslim 4.2%, other 3.5%, unspecified 2%, none 12% (2001
census)
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Languages:
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German (official
nationwide) 88.6%, Turkish 2.3%, Serbian 2.2%, Croatian (official in
Burgenland) 1.6%, other (includes Slovene, official in Carinthia, and
Hungarian, official in Burgenland) 5.3% (2001 census)
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Literacy:
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definition: age
15 and over can read and write
total population:
98%
male:
NA
female:
NA
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School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
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total: 15
years
male:
15 years
female:
16 years (2006)
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Education expenditures:
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5.4% of GDP (2005)
country comparison to the world: 51
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form:
Austria
local long form:
Republik Oesterreich
local short form:
Oesterreich
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Government type:
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federal republic
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Capital:
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name: Vienna
geographic coordinates:
48 12 N, 16 22 E
time difference:
UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during
Standard Time)
daylight saving time:
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last
Sunday in October
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Administrative divisions:
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9 states (Bundeslaender,
singular - Bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten (Carinthia),
Niederoesterreich (Lower Austria), Oberoesterreich (Upper Austria),
Salzburg, Steiermark (Styria), Tirol (Tyrol), Vorarlberg, Wien (Vienna)
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Independence:
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976 (Margravate of
Austria established); 17 September 1156 (Duchy of Austria founded); 11
August 1804 (Austrian Empire proclaimed); 12 November 1918 (republic
proclaimed)
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National holiday:
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National Day, 26 October
(1955); note - commemorates the passage of the law on permanent
neutrality
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Constitution:
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1920; revised 1929;
reinstated 1 May 1945; note - during the period 1 May 1934-1 May 1945
there was a fascist (corporative) constitution in place
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Legal system:
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civil law system with
Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by the
Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme
courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
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Suffrage:
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16 years of age;
universal; note - reduced from 18 years of age in 2007
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President
Heinz FISCHER (SPOe) (since 8 July 2004)
head of government:
Chancellor Werner FAYMANN (SPOe) (since 2 December
2008); Vice Chancellor Josef PROELL (OeVP) (since 2 December 2008)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers chosen by the president on
the advice of the chancellor
elections:
president elected by direct popular vote for a
six-year term (eligible for a second term); presidential election last
held on 25 April 2010 (next to be held on 25 April 2016); chancellor
formally chosen by the president but determined by the coalition parties
forming a parliamentary majority; vice chancellor chosen by the
president on the advice of the chancellor
election results:
Heinz FISCHER reelected president; percent of vote
- Heinz FISCHER 79.3%, Barbara ROSENKRANZ 15.2%, Rudolf GEHRING 5.4%
note:
government coalition - SPOe and OeVP
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Legislative branch:
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bicameral Federal
Assembly or Bundesversammlung consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat
(62 seats; members chosen by state parliaments with each state receiving
3 to 12 members in proportion to its population; members serve five- or
six-year terms) and the National Council or Nationalrat (183 seats;
members elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections:
National Council - last held on 28 September 2008
(next to be held by September 2013)
election results:
National Council - percent of vote by party - SPOe
29.3%, OeVP 26%, FPOe 17.5%, BZOe 10.7%, Greens 10.4%, other 6.1%;
seats by party - SPOe 57, OeVP 51, FPOe 34, BZOe 21, Greens 20
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Judicial Court or
Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof;
Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof
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Political parties and leaders:
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Alliance for the Future
of Austria or BZOe [Josef BUCHER]; Austrian People's Party or OeVP
[Josef PROELL]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Heinz Christian
STRACHE]; Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Werner FAYMANN];
The Greens [Eva GLAWISCHNIG]
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Austrian Trade Union
Federation or OeGB (nominally independent but primarily Social
Democratic); Federal Economic Chamber; OeVP-oriented Association of
Austrian Industrialists or IV; Roman Catholic Church, including its
chief lay organization, Catholic Action
other:
three composite leagues of the Austrian People's
Party or OeVP representing business, labor, farmers, and other
nongovernment organizations in the areas of environment and human rights
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International organization participation:
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ACCT (observer), ADB
(nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Australia Group, BIS,
BSEC (observer), CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO,
FATF, G-9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC,
MIGA, MINURCAT, MINURSO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF (observer),
OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, SECI (observer),
UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador
Christian PROSL
chancery:
3524 International Court NW, Washington, DC
20008-3035
telephone:
[1] (202) 895-6700
FAX:
[1] (202) 895-6750
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador
William C. EACHO III
embassy:
Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1090, Vienna
mailing address:
use embassy street address
telephone:
[43] (1) 31339-0
FAX:
[43] (1) 3100682
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Flag description:
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three equal horizontal
bands of red (top), white, and red; the flag design is certainly one of
the oldest - if not the oldest - national banners in the world;
according to tradition, in 1191, following a fierce battle in the Third
Crusade, Duke Leopold V of Austria's white tunic became completely
blood-spattered; upon removal of his wide belt or sash, a white band was
revealed; the red-white-red color combination was subsequently adopted
as his banner
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Economy - overview:
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Austria, with its well-developed
market economy and high standard of living, is closely tied to other EU
economies, especially Germany's. Its economy features a large service
sector, a sound industrial sector, and a small, but highly developed
agricultural sector. Following several years of solid foreign demand for
Austrian exports and record employment growth, the international
financial crisis and global economic downturn in 2008 led to a recession
that persisted until the third quarter of 2009. Austrian GDP contracted
3.5% in 2009 but it will probably see positive growth of nearly 2% in
2010. Unemployment has not risen as steeply in Austria as elsewhere in
Europe, partly because its government has subsidized reduced working
hour schemes to allow companies to retain employees. Such stabilization
measures, stimulus initiatives, and the government's income tax reforms
pushed the budget deficit to about 4% of GDP in 2009, from only about
1.3% in 2008. The Austrian economy has benefited greatly in the past
from strong commercial relations, especially in the banking and
insurance sectors, with central, eastern, and southeastern Europe, but
these sectors have been vulnerable to recent international financial
instabilities. Some of Austria's largest banks have required government
support - including in some instances, nationalization - to prevent
insolvency and possible regional contagion. In the medium-term all large
Austrian banks will need additional capital. Even after the global
economic outlook improves, Austria will need to continue restructuring,
emphasizing knowledge-based sectors of the economy, and encouraging
greater labor flexibility and greater labor participation to offset
growing unemployment and Austria's aging population and exceedingly low
fertility rate.
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GDP (purchasing power parity):
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$323.1 billion (2009
est.)
country comparison to the world: 37
$335.1
billion (2008 est.)
$328.5
billion (2007 est.)
note:
data are in 2009 US dollars
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GDP (official exchange rate):
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$378.8 billion (2009
est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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-3.5% (2009 est.)
69
2%
(2008 est.)
3.5%
(2007 est.)
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GDP - per capita (PPP):
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$39,400 (2009 est.)
1
$40,800
(2008 est.)
$40,100
(2007 est.)
note:
data are in 2009 US dollars
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 1.5%
industry:
29.8%
services:
69% (2009 est.)
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Labor force:
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3.68 million (2009 est.)
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Labor force -
by occupation:
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agriculture: 5.5%
industry:
27.5%
services:
67% (2005 est.)
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Unemployment rate:
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4.8% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 43
3.8%
(2008 est.)
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Population
below poverty line:
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6% (2008)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 4%
highest 10%:
22% (2007)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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26 (2007)
27
31
(1995)
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Investment (gross fixed):
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20.8% of GDP (2009 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues: $175
billion
expenditures:
$188.3 billion (2009 est.)
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Public debt:
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69.3% of GDP (2009 est.)
1
62.7%
of GDP (2008 est.)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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0.4% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
3.2%
(2008 est.)
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Commercial bank prime lending rate:
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6.82% (31 December 2008)
34
6.3%
(31 December 2007)
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Stock of
domestic credit:
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$606.2 billion (31
December 2008)
9
$504.8
billion (31 December 2007)
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Market value of publicly traded shares:
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$104.8 billion (31
December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 44
$72.3
billion (31 December 2008)
$228.7
billion (31 December 2007)
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Agriculture - products:
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grains, potatoes, sugar
beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber
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Industries:
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construction, machinery,
vehicles and parts, food, metals, chemicals, lumber and wood processing,
paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism
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Industrial production growth rate:
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-16.5% (2009 est.)
58
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Electricity -
production:
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66.78 billion kWh (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 40
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Electricity -
consumption:
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68.37 billion kWh (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
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Electricity - exports:
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14.93 billion kWh (2008
est.)
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Electricity - imports:
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19.8 billion kWh (2008
est.)
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Oil - production:
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19,360 bbl/day (2008)
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Oil - consumption:
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244,900 bbl/day (2008)
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Oil - exports:
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50,160 bbl/day (2008)
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Oil - imports:
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263,200 bbl/day (2008
est.)
country comparison to the world: 38
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Oil - proved reserves:
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96 million bbl (1 January
2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 70
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Natural gas -
production:
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1.532 billion cu m (2008)
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Natural gas -
consumption:
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8.39 billion cu m (2008)
country comparison to the world: 50
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Natural gas - exports:
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2.788 billion cu m (2008
est.)
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Natural gas - imports:
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9.78 billion cu m (2008)
3
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Natural
gas - proved reserves:
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27.9 billion cu m (1
January 2009 est.)
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Current account balance:
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$8.73 billion (2009 est.)
3
$13.44
billion (2008)
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Exports:
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$129 billion (2009 est.)
9
$172.2
billion (2008)
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Exports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment,
motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals,
iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs
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Exports - partners:
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Germany 28.9%, Italy
8.4%, US 4.2%, Switzerland 4.1% (2008)
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Imports:
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$138.7 billion (2009
est.)
4
$179.8
billion (2008)
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery and equipment,
motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs
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Imports - partners:
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Germany 43.6%, Italy
6.9%, Switzerland 5.1%, Netherlands 4.1% (2008)
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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
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$18.05 billion (31
December 2009 est.)
$16.7
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
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Debt - external:
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$808.9 billion (30
September 2009)
3
$864.2
billion (31 December 2008)
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Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
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$286.4 billion (31
December 2009 est.)
6
$279.1
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
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Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
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$290.5 billion (31
December 2009 est.)
4
$286
billion (31 December 2008 est.)
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Exchange rates:
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euros (EUR) per US dollar
- 0.7338 (2009), 0.6827 (2008), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041
(2005)
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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3.285 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 47
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Telephones -
mobile cellular:
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10.816 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 58
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Telephone system:
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general assessment: highly
developed and efficient
domestic:
fixed-line subscribership has been in decline
since the mid-1990s with mobile-cellular subscribership eclipsing it by
the late 1990s; the fiber-optic net is very extensive; all telephone
applications and Internet services are available
international:
country code - 43; satellite earth stations - 15;
in addition, there are about 600 VSATs (very small aperture terminals)
(2007)
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Radio broadcast stations:
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FM 65 (plus several
hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (2009)
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Television
broadcast stations:
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9 (2010)
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Internet country code:
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.at
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Internet hosts:
|
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2.992 million (2009)
6
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Internet users:
|
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5.937 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 39
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Airports:
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55 (2009)
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 25
over 3,047 m:
1
2,438 to 3,047 m:
5
1,524 to 2,437 m:
1
914 to 1,523 m:
4
under 914 m:
14 (2009)
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total: 30
1,524 to 2,437 m:
1
914 to 1,523 m:
3
under 914 m:
26 (2009)
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Heliports:
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1 (2009)
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Pipelines:
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gas 2,721 km; oil 663 km;
refined products 157 km (2009)
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Railways:
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total: 6,399
km
9
standard gauge:
5,927 km 1.435-m gauge (3,688 km electrified)
narrow gauge:
384 km 1.000-m gauge (15 km electrified); 88 km
0.760-m gauge (10 km electrified) (2008)
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Roadways:
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total: 107,262
km
country comparison to the world: 40
paved:
107,262 km (includes 1,677 km of expressways)
(2006)
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Waterways:
|
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358 km (2007)
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Merchant marine:
|
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total: 4
34
by type:
cargo 2, container 2
foreign-owned:
2 (Netherlands 2)
registered in other countries:
4 (Cyprus 1, Malta 1, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines 2) (2008)
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Ports and terminals:
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Enns, Krems, Linz, Vienna
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Military branches:
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Land Forces (KdoLdSK), Air Forces
(KdoLuSK)
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Military service age and obligation:
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18-35 years of age for
compulsory military service; 16 years of age for male or female
voluntary service; service obligation 6 months of training, followed by
an 8-year reserve obligation; conscripts cannot be deployed in military
operations outside Austria (2009)
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Manpower available for military service:
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males age 16-49: 1,960,781
females age 16-49:
1,926,134 (2010 est.)
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Manpower fit for military service:
|
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males age 16-49: 1,595,379
females age 16-49:
1,566,884 (2010 est.)
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Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
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male: 49,455
female:
47,046 (2010 est.)
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Military expenditures:
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0.8% of GDP (2009)
50
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| Transnational Issues
::Austria |
Disputes - international:
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while threats of international
legal action never materialized in 2007, 915,220 Austrians, with the
support of the newly elected Freedom Party, signed a petition in January
2008, demanding that Austria block the Czech Republic's accession to
the EU unless Prague closed its nuclear power plant in Temelin,
bordering Austria
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Illicit drugs:
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transshipment point for
Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western
Europe; increasing consumption of European-produced synthetic drugs
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Back to Countries in Europe
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