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Map of Chile

Background:
A three-year-old Marxist government was overthrown in 1973 by a dictatorial military regime led by Augusto PINOCHET, who ruled until a freely elected president was installed in 1990. Sound economic policies, first implemented by the PINOCHET dictatorship, led to unprecedented growth in 1991-97 and have helped secure the country's commitment to democratic and representative government.
Location:
Southern South America, bordering the South Pacific Ocean, between Argentina and Peru
Geographic coordinates:
30 00 S, 71 00 W
Map references:
South America
Area:
total: 756,950 sq km
land: 748,800 sq km
note: includes Easter Island (Isla de Pascua) and Isla Sala y Gomez
water: 8,150 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than twice the size of Montana
Land boundaries:
total: 6,171 km
border countries: Argentina 5,150 km, Bolivia 861 km, Peru 160 km
Coastline:
6,435 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM
continental shelf: 200/350 NM
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
Climate:
temperate; desert in north; Mediterranean in central region; cool and damp in south
Terrain:
low coastal mountains; fertile central valley; rugged Andes in east
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m
highest point: Nevado Ojos del Salado 6,880 m
Natural resources:
copper, timber, iron ore, nitrates, precious metals, molybdenum, hydropower
Land use:
arable land: 2.65%
permanent crops: 0.42%
other: 96.93% (1998 est.)
Irrigated land:
18,000 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards:
severe earthquakes; active volcanism; tsunamis
Environment - current issues:
widespread deforestation and mining threaten natural resources; air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions; water pollution from raw sewage
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban
Geography - note:
strategic location relative to sea lanes between Atlantic and Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage); Atacama Desert is one of world's driest regions
Population:
15,665,216 (July 2003 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 26.4% (male 2,112,251; female 2,018,099)
15-64 years: 66% (male 5,151,551; female 5,180,607)
65 years and over: 7.7% (male 499,441; female 703,267) (2003 est.)
Median age:
total: 29.5 years
male: 28.6 years
female: 30.4 years (2002)
Population growth rate:
1.05% (2003 est.)
Birth rate:
16.1 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Death rate:
5.63 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 8.88 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 8.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
male: 9.68 deaths/1,000 live births
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 76.35 years
male: 73.04 years
female: 79.82 years (2003 est.)
Total fertility rate:
2.09 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Chilean(s)
adjective: Chilean
Ethnic groups:
white and white-Amerindian 95%, Amerindian 3%, other 2%
Religions:
Roman Catholic 89%, Protestant 11%, Jewish NEGL%
Languages:
Spanish
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 96.2%
male: 96.4%
female: 96.1% (2003 est.)
Economy - overview:
Chile has a market-oriented economy characterized by a high level of foreign trade. During the early 1990s, Chile's reputation as a role model for economic reform was strengthened when the democratic government of Patricio AYLWIN - which took over from the military in 1990 - deepened the economic reform initiated by the military government. Growth in real GDP averaged 8% during 1991-97, but fell to half that level in 1998 because of tight monetary policies implemented to keep the current account deficit in check and because of lower export earnings - the latter a product of the global financial crisis. A severe drought exacerbated the recession in 1999, reducing crop yields and causing hydroelectric shortfalls and electricity rationing, and Chile experienced negative economic growth for the first time in more than 15 years. Despite the effects of the recession, Chile maintained its reputation for strong financial institutions and sound policy that have given it the strongest sovereign bond rating in South America. By the end of 1999, exports and economic activity had begun to recover, and growth rebounded to 4.4% in 2000. Growth fell back to 2.8% in 2001 and 1.8% in 2002, largely due to lackluster global growth and the devaluation of the Argentine peso. Unemployment remains stubbornly high, putting pressure on President LAGOS to improve living standards. One bright spot was the signing of a free trade agreement with the US on 11 December 2002.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $151 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
1.8% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $10,000 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 11%
industry: 34%
services: 55% (2001)
Population below poverty line:
21% (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.3%
highest 10%: 45.6% (1998)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
56.7 (1998)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.5% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
5.9 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 14%, industry 27%, services 59% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate:
9.2% (2002)
Budget:
revenues: $17 billion
expenditures: $17 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Industries:
copper, other minerals, foodstuffs, fish processing, iron and steel, wood and wood products, transport equipment, cement, textiles
Industrial production growth rate:
-1.5% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production:
41.66 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 47%
hydro: 51.5%
other: 1.5% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
40.13 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
1.386 billion kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
13,640 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
241,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Oil - proved reserves:
81.05 million bbl (January 2002 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
67.78 billion cu m (January 2002 est.)
Agriculture - products:
wheat, corn, grapes, beans, sugar beets, potatoes, fruit; beef, poultry, wool; fish; timber
Exports:
$17.8 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
copper, fish, fruits, paper and pulp, chemicals
Exports - partners:
US 17.9%, Japan 12.2%, UK 5.9%, Brazil 5.4%, China (2001)
Imports:
$15.6 billion f.o.b. (2002)
Imports - commodities:
consumer goods, chemicals, motor vehicles, fuels, electrical machinery, heavy industrial machinery, food
Imports - partners:
Argentina 18.1%, US 17.0%, Brazil 8.5%, China 5.9%, Japan (2001)
Debt - external:
$40.4 billion (2002)
Economic aid - recipient:
ODA, $40 million (2001 est.)
Currency:
Chilean peso (CLP)
Currency code:
CLP
Exchange rates:
Chilean pesos per US dollar - 688.953 (2002), 634.938 (2001), 535.466 (2000), 508.777 (1999), 460.287 (1998)
Fiscal year:
calendar year

 

 

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