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 Monetary Union in 1999.

Source: CIA World Fact Book

Population: 8,199,783 (July 2007 est.)

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Age structure: 0-14 years: 15.1% (male 633,375/female 603,459) 15-64 years: 67.5% (male 2,781,291/female 2,749,539) 65 years and over: 17.5% (male 585,747/female 846,372) (2007 est.)

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Median age: total: 41.3 years male: 40.2 years female: 42.4 years (2007 est.)

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Population growth rate: 0.077% (2007 est.)

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Birth rate: 8.69 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Death rate: 9.84 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Net migration rate: 1.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.012 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.692 male(s)/female total population: 0.953 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

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Infant mortality rate: total: 4.54 deaths/1,000 live births male: 5.56 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)

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Life expectancy at birth: total population: 79.21 years male: 76.32 years female: 82.26 years (2007 est.)

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Total fertility rate: 1.37 children born/woman (2007 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.3% (2003 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 10,000 (2003 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (2003 est.)

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Nationality: noun: Austrian(s) adjective: Austrian

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Ethnic groups: 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: Roman Catholic 73.6%, Protestant 4.7%, Muslim 4.2%, other 3.5%, unspecified 2%, none 12% (2001 census)

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Languages: 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: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: NA female: NA

Austria, with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living, is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. The Austrian economy also benefits greatly from strong commercial relations, especially in the banking and insurance sectors, with central, eastern, and southeastern Europe. The economy features a large service sector, a sound industrial sector, and a small, but highly developed agricultural sector. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to the new EU economies. The outgoing government has successfully pursued a comprehensive economic reform program, aimed at streamlining government and creating a more competitive business environment, further strengthening Austria's attractiveness as an investment location. It has implemented effective pension reforms; however, lower taxes in 2005-06 led to a small budget deficit in 2006. Weak domestic consumption and slow growth in Europe held the economy to growth rates below 3% in 2002-05. Due to higher growth across Europe, Austria grew 3.3 percent in 2006. To meet increased competition - especially from new EU members and Central European countries - Austria will need to continue restructuring, emphasizing knowledge-based sectors of the economy, and encouraging greater labor flexibility and greater labor participation by its aging population.

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GDP (purchasing power parity): $283.8 billion (2006 est.)

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GDP (official exchange rate): $310.1 billion (2006 est.)

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GDP - real growth rate: 3.3% (2006 est.)

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GDP - per capita (PPP): $34,600 (2006 est.)

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GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1.8% industry: 30.4% services: 67.8% (2005)

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Labor force: 3.88 million (2006 est.)

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Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 3% industry: 27% services: 70% (2005 est.)

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Unemployment rate: 4.9% (2006 est.)

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Population below poverty line: 5.9% (2004)

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Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3.3% highest 10%: 22.5% (2004)

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Distribution of family income - Gini index: 31 (2002)

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Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.6% (2006 est.)

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Investment (gross fixed): 21% of GDP (2006 est.)

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Budget: revenues: $155.9 billion expenditures: $161.6 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)

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Public debt: 63% of GDP (2006 est.)

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Agriculture - products: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber

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Industries: 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: 5.7% (2006 est.)

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Electricity - production: 64.9 billion kWh (2005 est.)

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Electricity - consumption: 65.2 billion kWh (2005 est.)

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Electricity - exports: 17.73 billion kWh (2005 est.)

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Electricity - imports: 20.4 billion kWh (2005 est.)

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Oil - production: 25,360 bbl/day (2004)

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Oil - consumption: 282,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

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Oil - exports: 34,680 bbl/day (2004)

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Oil - imports: 157,500 bbl/day (2005)

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Oil - proved reserves: 62 million bbl (1 January 2005)

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Natural gas - production: 1.637 billion cu m (2005)

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Natural gas - consumption: 9 billion cu m (2005)

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Natural gas - exports: 1.324 billion cu m (2004)

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Natural gas - imports: 9.18 billion cu m (2005)

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Natural gas - proved reserves: 15.01 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)

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Current account balance: $5.913 billion (2006 est.)

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Exports: $133.3 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

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Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs

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Exports - partners: Germany 31.7%, Italy 8.8%, US 5.7%, Switzerland 4.6%, France 4% (2006)

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Imports: $134.3 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)

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Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs

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Imports - partners: Germany 46.5%, Italy 6.8%, Switzerland 4.4%, Netherlands 4% (2006)

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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $12.72 billion (November 2006 est.)

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Debt - external: $594.3 billion (October 2006 est.)

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Economic aid - donor: ODA, $681 million (2004)

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Currency (code): euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries

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Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)

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Fiscal year: calendar year