Background: The site of advanced Amerindian civilizations Mexico came under Spanish rule for three centuries before achieving independence early in the 19th century.

Land boundaries:

Coastline: 9,330 km

Maritime claims
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Continental shelf: natural prolongation of continental margin or 200 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: varies from tropical to desert

Terrain: high, rugged mountains, low coastal plains, high plateaus, and desert

Natural resources: crude oil, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber

Land use: arable land: 12%; permanent crops: 1%; meadows and pastures 39%; forest and woodland 24%; other 24%; includes irrigated 3%

Geography
Note: strategic location on southern border of US

Population: 90,007,304 (July 1991), growth rate 2.2% (1991)

Nationality: noun--Mexican(s; adjective--Mexican

Ethnic groups: mestizo (Indian-Spanish) 60%, Amerindian or predominantly Amerindian 30%, white or predominantly white 9%, other 1%

Languages: Spanish

Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant 3%

Birth rate: 29 births/1000 population (1991)

Death rate: 5 deaths/1000 population (1991)

Net migration rate: - 1 migrants/1000 population (1991)

Environment
Current issues: subject to tsunamis along the Pacific coast and destructive earthquakes in the center and south; natural water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; deforestation; erosion widespread; desertification; serious air pollution in Mexico City and urban centers along US-Mexico border

Infant mortality rate: 29 deaths/1000 live births (1991)

Life expectancy at birth: 68 years male, 76 years female (1991)

Total fertility rate: 3.4 children born/woman (1991)

Literacy: 87% (male 90%, female 85%) age 15 and over can read and write (1985 est.)

Country name: conventional long form: United Mexican States

Government type: federal republic operating under a centralized government

Capital: Mexico

Administrative divisions: 31 states (estados, singular--estado) and 1 federal district* (distrito federal; Aguascalientes, Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chiapas, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Colima, Distrito Federal*, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacan, Morelos, Nayarit, Nuevo Leon, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Veracruz, Yucatan, Zacatecas

Independence: 16 September 1810 (from Spain)

National holiday: Independence Day, 16 September (1810)

Constitution: 5 February 1917

Legal system: mixture of US constitutional theory and civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: universal and compulsory (but not enforced) at age 18

Executive branch: Chief of State and Head of Government--President Carlos SALINAS de Gortari (since 1 December 1988)

Legislative branch: National Defense (includes Army and Air Force), Navy (includes Marines)

Judicial branch: Supreme Court of Justice (Suprema Corte de Justicia)

International organization participation: AG (observer), CCC, CDB, CG, EBRD, ECLAC, FAO, G-3, G-6, G-11, G-19, G-24, G-77, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, LORCS, NAM (observer), OAS, OPANAL, PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us: Ambassador Gustavo PETRICIOLI Iturbide; Chancery at 1911 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington DC 20,006; telephone (202) 728-1600; there are Mexican Consulates General in Chicago, Dallas, Denver, El Paso, Houston, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, San Antonio, San Diego, and Consulates in Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Brownsville (Texas), Calexico (California), Corpus Christi, Del Rio (Texas), Detroit, Douglas (Arizona), Eagle Pass (Texas), Fresno (California), Kansas City (Missouri), Laredo, McAllen (Texas), Miami, Nogales (Arizona), Oxnard (California), Philadelphia, Phoenix, Presidio (Texas), Sacramento, St. Louis, St. Paul (Minneapolis), Salt Lake City, San Bernardino, San Jose, San Juan (Puerto Rico), and Seattle; US--Ambassador John D. NEGROPONTE, Jr.; Embassy at Paseo de la Reforma 305, 6,500 Mexico, D.F. (mailing address is P. O. Box 3,087, Laredo, TX 78,044-3,087; telephone [52] (5) 211-0042; there are US Consulates General in Ciudad Juarez, Guadalajara, Monterrey, and Tijuana, and Consulates in Hermosillo, Matamoros, Mazatlan, Merida, and Nuevo Laredo

Flag description: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; the coat of arms (an eagle perched on a cactus with a snake is its beak) is centered in the white band Mexico MexicoMexico

Economy overview: Mexico's economy is a mixture of state-owned industrial plants (notably oil), private manufacturing and services, and both large-scale and traditional agriculture. In the 1980s Mexico experienced
Severe economic difficulties: the nation accumulated large external debts as world petroleum prices fell; rapid population growth outstripped the domestic food supply; and inflation, unemployment, and pressures to emigrate became more acute. Growth in national output, however, appears to be recovering, rising from 1.4% in 1988 to 3.9% in 1990. The US is Mexico's major trading partner, accounting for two-thirds of its exports and imports. After petroleum, border assembly plants and tourism are the largest earners of foreign exchange. The government, in consultation with international economic agencies, is implementing programs to stabilize the economy and foster growth. In 1991 the government also plans to begin negotiations with the US and Canada on a free trade agreement.

Agriculture products: accounts for 9% of GDP and over 25% of work force; large number of small farms at subsistence level; major food crops--corn, wheat, rice, beans; cash crops--cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; fish catch of 1.4 million metric tons among top 20 nations (1987)

Industries: food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, transportation equipment, tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 5.3% (1989; accounts for 27% of GDP

Labor force: 26,100,000 (1988; services 31.4%, agriculture, forestry, hunting, and fishing 26%, commerce 13.9%, manufacturing 12.8%, construction 9.5%, transportation 4.8%, mining and quarrying 1.3%, electricity 0.3% (1986)

Unemployment rate: 15-18% (1990 est.)

Budget: revenues $44.3 billion; expenditures $55.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.8 billion (1989)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Exports: $26.8 billion (f.o.b., 1990)
Commodities: crude oil, oil products, coffee, shrimp, engines, cotton
Partners: US 66%, EC 16%, Japan 11%

Imports: $29.8 billion (c.i.f., 1990)
Commodities: grain, metal manufactures, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment
Partners: US 62%, EC 18%, Japan 10%

Debt external: $96.0 billion (1990)

Exchange rates: market rate of Mexican pesos (Mex$) per US$1--2,940.9 (January 1991), 2,812.6 (1990), 2,461.3 (1989), 2,273.1 (1988), 1,378.2 (1987), 611.8 (1986), 256.9 (1985)

Electricity
Capacity: 27,600,000 kW capacity; 108,976 million kWh produced, 1,240 kWh per capita (1990)

Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: $1 billion, 0.6% of GDP (1988)

Airports: 1,815 total, 1,537 usable; 195 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m; 33 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 276 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Pipelines: crude oil, 28,200 km; refined products, 10,150 km; natural gas, 13,254 km; petrochemical, 1,400 km

Waterways: 2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals

Merchant marine: 64 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 999,423 GRT/1,509,939 DWT; includes 4 short-sea passenger, 9 cargo, 2 refrigerated cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 31 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 3 chemical tanker, 7 liquefied gas, 3 bulk, 3 combination bulk

Disputes international: claims Clipperton Island (French possession)

Illicit drugs: illicit cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis continues in spite of government eradication efforts; major link in chain of countries used to smuggle cocaine from South American dealers to US markets