Statistical information European Union 2012
European Union in the World
European Union - Introduction 2012
top of pageBackground:
Following the two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to reconcile the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both economically and politically. In 1950 the French Foreign Minister Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all Europe the first step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members Belgium France West Germany Italy Luxembourg and the Netherlands signed the Treaty of Paris.
The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other elements of the countries' economies. In 1957 envisioning an 'ever closer union' the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967 the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC) creating a single Commission a single Council of Ministers and the body known today as the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments but in 1979 the first direct elections were u
In 1973 the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark Ireland and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy in judicial and internal affairs and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU) at the time standing alongside the European Community. In 1995 Austria Finland and Sw
A new currency the euro was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all EU member states except the United Kingdom Sweden and Denmark. In 2002 citizens of those 12 countries began using euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus the Czech Republic Estonia Hungary Latvia Lithuania Malta Poland Slovakia and Slovenia - and in 2007 Bulgaria and Romania join
In an effort to ensure that the EU could function efficiently with an expanded membership the Treaty of Nice (signed in 2000) set forth rules aimed at streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An effort to establish a 'Constitution for Europe' growing out of a Convention held in 2002-2003 foundered when it was rejected in referenda in France and the Netherlands in 2005. A subsequent effort in 2007 incorporated many of the features of the rejected Constitution while also making a number of substantive and symbolic changes. The new treaty initially known as the Reform Treaty but subsequently referred to as the Treaty of Lisbon sought to amend existing treaties rather than replace them. The treaty was approved at the EU intergovernmental conference of the 27 member states held in Lisbon in December 2007 after which the process of national ratifications began. In October 2009 an Irish referendum approved the Lisbon Treaty (overturning a previous rejection) and cleared the way for an ultimate unanimous endorsement. Poland and the Czech Republic signed on soon after. The Lisbon Treaty again invoking the idea of an 'ever closer union' came into force on 1 December 2009 and the European Union officially replaced and succeeded the European Community.
The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other elements of the countries' economies. In 1957 envisioning an 'ever closer union' the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967 the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC) creating a single Commission a single Council of Ministers and the body known today as the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments but in 1979 the first direct elections were u
In 1973 the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark Ireland and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy in judicial and internal affairs and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU) at the time standing alongside the European Community. In 1995 Austria Finland and Sw
A new currency the euro was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all EU member states except the United Kingdom Sweden and Denmark. In 2002 citizens of those 12 countries began using euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus the Czech Republic Estonia Hungary Latvia Lithuania Malta Poland Slovakia and Slovenia - and in 2007 Bulgaria and Romania join
In an effort to ensure that the EU could function efficiently with an expanded membership the Treaty of Nice (signed in 2000) set forth rules aimed at streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An effort to establish a 'Constitution for Europe' growing out of a Convention held in 2002-2003 foundered when it was rejected in referenda in France and the Netherlands in 2005. A subsequent effort in 2007 incorporated many of the features of the rejected Constitution while also making a number of substantive and symbolic changes. The new treaty initially known as the Reform Treaty but subsequently referred to as the Treaty of Lisbon sought to amend existing treaties rather than replace them. The treaty was approved at the EU intergovernmental conference of the 27 member states held in Lisbon in December 2007 after which the process of national ratifications began. In October 2009 an Irish referendum approved the Lisbon Treaty (overturning a previous rejection) and cleared the way for an ultimate unanimous endorsement. Poland and the Czech Republic signed on soon after. The Lisbon Treaty again invoking the idea of an 'ever closer union' came into force on 1 December 2009 and the European Union officially replaced and succeeded the European Community.
European Union - Geography 2012
top of pageLocation: Europe between the North Atlantic Ocean in the west and Russia Belarus and Ukraine to the east
Geographic coordinates
Map reference
Area
Comparative: less than one-half the size of the US
Land boundaries
Coastline: 65,993 km
Maritime claims: NA
Climate: cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate; mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south
Terrain: fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the central and southern areas
Elevation
Natural resources: iron ore natural gas petroleum coal copper lead zinc bauxite uranium potash salt hydropower arable land: timber fish
Land use
Land use
Irrigated land: 182,913 km² (2003 est.)
Major rivers
Major watersheds area km²
Total water withdrawal
Total renewable water resources
Natural hazards: flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in Spain; ice floes in the Baltic
Geography
European Union - People 2012
top of pagePopulation: 503,824,373 (July 2012 est.)
Growth rate: 0.212% (2012 est.)
Below poverty line: note - see individual country entries of member states
Nationality
Ethnic groups
Languages: Bulgarian Czech Danish Dutch English Estonian Finnish French Gaelic German Greek Hungarian Italian Latvian Lithuanian Maltese Polish Portuguese Romanian Slovak Slovene Spanish Swedish
Religions: Roman Catholic Protestant Orthodox Muslim Jewish
Demographic profile
Age structure
Age structure
Dependency ratios
Median age: note - see individual country entries of member states
Population growth rate: 0.212% (2012 est.)
Birth rate: 10.27 births/1000 population (2012 est.)
Death rate: 10.05 deaths/1000 population (July 2012 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.90 migrant(s)/1000 population (2012 est.)
Population distribution
Urbanization
Major urban areas
Environment
Current issues: NA
Air pollutants
Sex ratio
Mothers mean age at first birth
Maternal mortality ratio
Infant mortality rate
Rank: 190
Life expectancy at birth
Rank: 36
Total fertility rate: 1.58 children born/woman (2012 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
Drinking water source
Current health expenditure
Physicians density
Hospital bed density
Sanitation facility access
Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: note - see individual country entries of member states
People living with hivaids: note - see individual country entries of member states
Deaths: note - see individual country entries of member states
Major infectious diseases
Obesity adult prevalence rate
Alcohol consumption
Tobacco use
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
Education expenditures
Literacy
School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Youth unemployment
European Union - Government 2012
top of pageCountry name
Government type
Capital
Administrative divisions
Dependent areas
Independence: 7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the European Union); 1 November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)
National holiday: Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - the day in 1950 that Robert SCHUMAN proposed the creation of what became the European Coal and Steel Community the progenitor of today's European Union with the aim of achieving a united Europe
Constitution: none
Legal system: unique supranational law system in which according to an interpretive declaration of member-state governments appended to the Treaty of Lisbon 'the Treaties and the law adopted by the Union on the basis of the Treaties have primacy over the law of Member States' under conditions laid down in the case law of the Court of Justice; key principles of EU law include fundamental rights as guaranteed by the Charter of Fundamental Rights and as resulting from constitutional traditions common to the EU's states; EU law is divided into 'primary' and 'secondary' legislation; the treaties (primary legislation) are the basis for all EU action; secondary legislation - which includes regulations directives and decisions - are derived from the principles and objectives set out in the treaties
International law organization participation
Citizenship
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal; voting for the European Parliament is permitted in each member state
Executive branch: under the EU treaties there are three distinct institutions each of which conducts functions that may be regarded as executive in nature:
Legislative branch: two legislative bodies consisting of the Council of the European Union (27 member-state ministers having 345 votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states' population and 255 votes plus a majority of member states forms a 'qualified majority' to pass a measure) and the European Parliament (754 seats; seats allocated among member states in proportion to population; members elected by direct universal suffrage for a five-year term); note - the European Parliament President is elected by a majority of fellow members of the European Parliament (MEP) and represents the Parliament with the EU and internationally; German MEP Martin SCHULZ from the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) was elected in January 2012; the Council of the EU is the main decision-making body of the EU although the European Parliament must also approve almost all EU legislation; the Parliament does not have the right to initiate legislation
Judicial branch: Court of Justice of the European Union (ensures that the treaties are interpreted and applied uniformly throughout the EU resolves disputed issues among the EU institutions issues opinions on questions of EU law referred by member state courts) - 27 judges (one from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - the court can sit in chambers in a 'Grand Chamber' of 13 judges or as the full court; General Court (a court below the Court of Justice) - 27 judges appointed for a six-year term; Civil Service Tribunal - 7 judges appointed for a three-year term
Political parties and leaders: Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or GUE/NGL [Gabriele ZIMMER]; Europe of Freedom and Democracy Group or EFD [Nigel FARAGE and Francesco SPERONI]; European Conservatives and Reformists Group or ECR [Martin CALLANAN]; Group of Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Rebecca HARMS and Daniel COHN-BENDIT]; Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Guy VERHOFSTADT]; Group of the European People's Party or EPP [Joseph DAUL]; Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats or S&D [Hannes SWOBODA]
International organization participation: ARF (dialogue member) ASEAN (dialogue member) Australian Group BIS BSEC (observer) CBSS CERN EBRD FAO FATF G-8 G-10 G-20 IDA IEA IGAD (partners) LAIA (observer) NSG (observer) OAS (observer) OECD PIF (partner) SAARC (observer) UN (observer) UNRWA (observer) WCO WTO ZC (observer)
Diplomatic representation
Flag description: a blue field with 12 five-pointed gold stars arranged in a circle in the center; blue represents the sky of the Western world the stars are the peoples of Europe in a circle a symbol of unity; the number of stars is fixed
National symbols: a circle of 12 stars
National anthem
National heritage
European Union - Economy 2012
top of pageEconomy overview: Internally the EU has abolished trade barriers adopted a common currency and is striving toward convergence of living standards. Internationally the EU aims to bolster Europe's trade position and its political and economic weight. Because of the great differences in per capita income among member states (from $13,000 to $82,000) and in national attitudes toward issues like inflation debt and foreign trade the EU faces difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. Eleven established EU member states under the auspices of the European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) introduced the euro as their common currency on 1 January 1999 (Greece did so two years later). Between 2004 and 2007 12 states acceded to the EU that are in general less advanced economically than the other 15 member states. Of the 12 most recent entrants only Slovenia (1 January 2007) Cyprus and Malta (1 January 2008) Slovakia (1 January 2009) and Estonia (1 January 2011) have adopted the euro; 10 non-Euro member states other than the UK and Denmark which have formal opt-outs are required by EU treaties to adopt the common currency upon meeting fiscal and monetary convergence criteria. Following the 2008-09 global economic crisis the EU economy saw moderate GDP growth in 2010 and 2011 but a sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone intensified in 2011 and became the bloc's top economic and political priority. Despite EU/IMF adjustment programs in Greece Ireland and Portugal and consolidation measures in many other EU member states significant risks to growth remain including high public debt loads aging populations onerous regulations and fears of debt crisis contagion. In response euro-zone leaders in 2011 boosted funding levels for the temporary European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) to almost $600 billion and made loan terms more favorable for crisis-hit countries and in July 2012 brought the permanent European Stabilization Mechanism (ESM) online a year earlier than originally planned. In addition 25 of 27 EU member states (all except the UK and Czech Republic) have indicated their intent to enact a 'fiscal compact' treaty to boost long-term budgetary discipline and coordination. In September 2012 the European Central Bank committed to a bond-buying program for troubled euro-zone member states that agree to a formal program of fiscal and structural reforms aiming to reduce their borrowing costs and restore confidence in the euro zone.
Real gdp purchasing power parity:
$15.67 trillion (2011 est.)
$15.42 trillion (2010 est.)
$15.42 trillion (2010 est.)
Rank: 1
Real gdp growth rate:
1.6% (2011 est.)
2.1% (2010 est.)
2.1% (2010 est.)
Rank: 189
Real gdp per capita:
$34,700 (2011 est.)
$34,300 (2010 est.)
$34,300 (2010 est.)
Rank: 39
Gross national saving
Gdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end use
Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture products: wheat barley oilseeds sugar beets wine grapes; dairy products cattle sheep pigs poultry; fish
Industries
Industrial production growth rate: 2.8% (2011 est.)
Rank: 109
Labor force: 229 million (2012 est.)
Rank: 3
Labor force
Unemployment rate: 9.7% (2011)
Rank: 114
Youth unemployment
Population below poverty line: note - see individual country entries of member states
Gini index
Household income or consumption by percentage share
Distribution of family income gini index: 31.2 (1996 est.)
Rank: 113
Budget
Taxes and other revenues
Public debt
Revenue
Fiscal year: NA
Inflation rate consumer prices: 1.8% (2011 est.)
Rank: 59
Central bank discount rate: 1.75% (31 December 2011)
Rank: 119
Commercial bank prime lending rate: 7.52% (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 123
Stock of narrow money: $5.542 trillion (31 December 2010)
Rank: 2
Stock of broad money: $11.17 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
Rank: 4
Stock of domestic credit: $21.81 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)
Rank: 2
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$10.5 trillion (31 December 2010)
$9.823 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
$9.823 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
Rank: 2
Current account balance: -$5.73 billion (2010 est.)
Rank: 185
Exports: $1.791 trillion (2010 est.)
Rank: 1
Commodities: machinery motor vehicles pharmaceuticals and other chemicals fuels aircraft plastics iron and steel wood pulp and paper products alcoholic beverages furniture
Imports: $2.028 trillion (2010 est.)
Rank: 1
Commodities: fuels and crude oil machinery vehicles pharmaceuticals and other chemicals precious gemstones textiles aircraft plastics metals ships
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $812.1 billion (31 December 2011)
Debt external: $13.72 trillion (30 June 2010)
Rank: 1
Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $N/A
Stock of direct foreign investment abroad
Exchange rates:
euros per US dollar -
0.7838 (2012 est.)
0.7185 (2011 est.)
755 (2010 est.)
0.7198 (2009 est.)
0.6827 (2008 est.)
0.7838 (2012 est.)
0.7185 (2011 est.)
755 (2010 est.)
0.7198 (2009 est.)
0.6827 (2008 est.)
European Union - Energy 2012
top of pageElectricity
Production: 3.255 trillion kWh (2011 est.)
Production rank: 4
Consumption: 3.037 trillion kWh (2009 est.)
Consumption rank: 4
Coal
Petroleum
Crude oil proven reserves: 5.337 billion bbl (1 January 2012 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 23
Crude oil
Refined petroleum
Products production: 12.19 million bbl/day (2011 est.)
Products production rank: 3
Products consumption: 13.3 million bbl/day (2011 est.)
Products consumption rank: 3
Products exports: 2.196 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
Products exports rank: 2
Products imports: 8.613 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
Products imports rank: 2
Natural gas
Production: 167.6 billion m³ (2011 est.)
Production rank: 4
Consumption: 461.5 billion m³ (2011 est.)
Consumption rank: 4
Exports: 93.75 billion m³ (2010 est.)
Exports rank: 5
Imports: 420.6 billion m³ (2010 est.)
Imports rank: 2
Proven reserves: 2.005 trillion m³ (1 January 2012 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 19
Carbon dioxide emissions
Energy consumption per capita
European Union - Communication 2012
top of pageTelephones
Main lines in use: 226 million (2011)
Mobile cellular: 629 million (2011)
Telephone system: note - see individual country entries of member states
Broadcast media
Internet
Country code: .eu; note - see country entries of member states for individual country codes
Hosts: 201,116; note - this sum reflects the number of Internet hosts assigned the .eu Internet country code (2012)
Users: 247 million (2006)
Broadband fixed subscriptions
European Union - Military 2012
top of pageMilitary expenditures
Military and security forces
Military service age and obligation
Space program
Terrorist groups
European Union - Transportation 2012
top of pageNational air transport system
Civil aircraft registration country code prefix
Airports: 3,294 (2012)
Heliports: 91 (2012)
Pipelines
Railways
Roadways
Waterways: 44,103 km (2010)
Merchant marine
Ports and terminals: Antwerp (Belgium) Barcelona (Spain) Braila (Romania) Bremen (Germany) Burgas (Bulgaria) Constanta (Romania) Copenhagen (Denmark) Galati (Romania) Gdansk (Poland) Hamburg (Germany) Helsinki (Finland) Las Palmas (Canary Islands Spain) Le Havre (France) Lisbon (Portugal) London (UK) Marseille (France) Naples (Italy) Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece) Riga (Latvia) Rotterdam (Netherlands) Stockholm (Sweden) Talinn (Estonia) Tulcea (Romania) Varna (Bulgaria)
European Union - Transnational issues 2012
top of pageDisputes international: as a political union the EU has no border disputes with neighboring countries but Estonia has no land boundary agreements with Russia Slovenia disputes its land and maritime boundaries with Croatia and Spain has territorial and maritime disputes with Morocco and with the UK over Gibraltar; the EU has set up a Schengen area - consisting of 22 EU member states that have signed the convention implementing the Schengen agreements or 'acquis' (1985 and 1990) on the free movement of persons and the harmonization of border controls in Europe; these agreements became incorporated into EU law with the implementation of the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam on 1 May 1999; in addition non-EU states Iceland and Norway (as part of the Nordic Union) have been included in the Schengen area since 1996 (full members in 2001) Switzerland since 2008 and Liechtenstein since 2011 bringing the total current membership to 26; the UK (since 2000) and Ireland (since 2002) take part in only some aspects of the Schengen area especially with respect to police and criminal matters; nine of the 12 new member states that joined the EU since 2004 joined Schengen on 21 December 2007; of the three remaining EU states Romania and Bulgaria may join by late 2012 while Cyprus' entry is held up by the ongoing Cyprus dispute
Refugees and internally displaced persons
Illicit drugs
