3073

CIA

THE WORLD FACT BOOK

ICELAND

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ic.html

ISLANDE

HISTOIRE

Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930.

Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark.

INDEPENDENCE:

1 December 1918 (became a sovereign state under the Danish Crown); 17 June 1944 (from Denmark)

NATIONAL HOLIDAY:

Independence Day, 17 June (1944)

Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine.

Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US.

Limited home rule from Denmark was granted in 1874 and complete independence attained in 1944.

Literacy, longevity, and social cohesion are first-rate by world standards.

LOCATION:

Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the United Kingdom

Geographic coordinates:
65 00 N, 18 00 W

AREA:

total: 103,000 sq km
country comparison to the world: 107

land: 100,250 sq km
water: 2,750 sq km

AREA - COMPARATIVE:

slightly smaller than Kentucky

CLIMATE:

temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers

NATURAL RESOURCES:

fish, hydropower, geothermal power, diatomite

NATURAL HAZARDS:

earthquakes and volcanic activity

GEOGRAPHIC

strategic location between Greenland and Europe; westernmost European country; Reykjavik is the northernmost national capital in the world; more land covered by glaciers than in all of continental Europe

PEOPLE

306,694 (July 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 178

INFANT MORTALITY RATE:

total: 3.23 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 218

LIFE EXPECTANCY AT BIRTH:

total population: 80.67 years
country comparison to the world: 13
male: 78.53 years
female: 82.9 years (2009 est.)

ETHNIC GROUPS:

homogeneous mixture of descendants of Norse and Celts 94%, population of foreign origin 6%

RELIGIONS:

Lutheran Church of Iceland 80.7%, Roman Catholic Church 2.5%, Reykjavik Free Church 2.4%, Hafnarfjorour Free Church 1.6%, other religions 3.6%, unaffiliated 3%, other or unspecified 6.2% (2006 est.)

LANGUAGES:

Icelandic, English, Nordic languages, German widely spoken

LITERACY:

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2003 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 18 years
male: 17 years
female: 19 years (2006)

EDUCATION EXPENDITURES:

7.6% of GDP (2004)
country comparison to the world: 16

ECONOMY

Iceland's Scandinavian-type social-market economy combines a capitalist structure and free-market principles with an extensive welfare system.

Prior to the 2008 crisis, Iceland had achieved high growth, low unemployment, and a remarkably even distribution of income.

The economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, which provides 40% of export earnings, more than 12% of GDP, and employs 7% of the work force. It remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to fluctuations in world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum, and ferrosilicon.

Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and service industries in the last decade, with new developments in software production, biotechnology, and tourism.

Abundant geothermal sources have attracted substantial foreign investment in the aluminum and hydropower sectors and boosted economic growth, although the financial crisis has put several investment projects on hold.

Much of Iceland's economic growth in recent years came as the result of a boom in domestic demand following the rapid expansion of the country's financial sector.

Domestic banks expanded aggressively in foreign markets, and consumers and businesses borrowed heavily in foreign-currency loans, following the privatization of the sector in the early 2000s.

Worsening global financial conditions throughout 2008 resulted in a sharp depreciation of the krona vis-a-vis other major currencies.

The foreign exposure of Icelandic banks, whose loans and other assets totaled more than 10 times the country's GDP, became unsustainable.

Iceland's three largest banks collapsed in late 2008.

The country secured over $10 billion in loans from the IMF and other countries to stabilize its currency and financial sector, and to back government guarantees for foreign deposits in Icelandic banks.

GDP fell 6.3% in 2009, and unemployment rose to 8.8%.

GDP growth is expected to be near zero in 2010 and unemployment likely to surpass 10%.

Since the collapse of Iceland's financial sector, government economic priorities include stabilizing the krona, reducing its high budget deficit, containing inflation, restructuring the financial sector, and diversifying the economy.

The collapse of the financial system initially led to a major shift in opinion in favor of joining the EU and adopting the euro, although support has dropped substantially because of concern about losing control of their fishing resources and reaction to measures taken by EU partners following the financial crisis.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$12.2 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 141
$13.02 billion (2008 est.)
$12.85 billion (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars

LABOR FORCE:

189,000 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 172

LABOR FORCE - BY OCCUPATION:

agriculture: 3%
industry: 19%
services: 78% (2007)

BUDGET:

revenues: $3.879 billion
expenditures: $5.488 billion (2009 est.)

PUBLIC DEBT:

100.6% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 10


OIL - PRODUCTION:

0 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 173

OIL - CONSUMPTION:

19,880 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 128

DEBT - EXTERNAL:

$3.073 billion (2002 est.)
country comparison to the world: 118