Statistics United States 
United States in the World
United States - Introduction 2017
top of pageBackground: Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65) in which a northern Union of states defeated a secessionist Confederacy of 11 southern slave states and the Great Depression of the 1930s an economic downturn during which about a quarter of the labor force lost its jobs. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991 the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. Since the end of World War II the economy has achieved relatively steady growth low unemployment and inflation and rapid advances in technology.
Area
Total: 9,833,517 km²
Land: 9,147,593 km²
Water: 685,924 km²
Note: includes only the 50 states and District of Columbia no overseas territories
Rank: 4
Comparative: about half the size of Russia; about three-tenths the size of Africa; about half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly larger than China; more than twice the size of the European Union
Land boundaries
Total: 12,048 km
Border countries: (2) Canada 8,893 km; (including 2,477 km; with Alaska) Mexico 3,155 km
Note: US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay Cuba is leased by the US and is part of Cuba; the base boundary is 28.5 km
Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Continental shelf: not specified
Climate: mostly temperate but tropical in Hawaii and Florida arctic in Alaska semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
Terrain: vast central plain mountains in west hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys in Alaska; rugged volcanic topography in Hawaii
Elevation
Mean elevation: 760 m
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Death Valley -86 m: highest point: Denali (Mount McKinley) 6,190 m (highest point in North America)
Note: the peak of Mauna Kea on the island of Hawaii rises about 10,200 m above the Pacific Ocean floor; by this measurement it is the world's tallest mountain - higher than Mount Everest (8,850 m) which is recognized as the tallest mountain above sea level
Natural resources: coal copper lead molybdenum phosphates rare earth elements uranium bauxite gold iron mercury nickel potash silver tungsten zinc petroleum natural gas timber arable land
Note: the US has the world's largest coal reserves with 491 billion short tons accounting for 27% of the world's total
Land use
Agricultural land: 44.5%
arable land: 16.8%
permanent crops: 0.3%
permanent pasture: 27.4%
permanent crops: 0.3%
permanent pasture: 27.4%
Forest: 33.3%
Other: 22.2%
Natural hazards: tsunamis; volcanoes; earthquake activity around Pacific Basin; hurricanes along the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico coasts; tornadoes in the Midwest and Southeast; mud slides in California; forest fires in the west; flooding; permafrost in northern Alaska a major impediment to development
Volcanism: volcanic activity in the Hawaiian Islands Western Alaska the Pacific Northwest and in the Northern Mariana Islands; both Mauna Loa in Hawaii and Mount Rainier (4,392 m) in Washington have been deemed Decade Volcanoes by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior worthy of study due to their explosive history and close proximity to human populations; Pavlof (2,519 m) is the most active volcano in Alaska's Aleutian Arc and poses a significant threat to air travel since the area constitutes a major flight path between North America and East Asia; St. Helens (2,549 m) famous for the devastating 1980 eruption remains active today; numerous other historically active volcanoes exist mostly concentrated in the Aleutian arc and Hawaii; they include: in Alaska: Aniakchak Augustine Chiginagak Fourpeaked Iliamna Katmai Kupreanof Martin Novarupta Redoubt Spurr Wrangell; in Hawaii: Trident Ugashik-Peulik Ukinrek Maars Veniaminof; in the Northern Mariana Islands: Anatahan; and in the Pacific Northwest: Mount Baker Mount Hood
Geography
Note: world's third-largest country by size (after Russia and Canada) and by population (after China and India); Denali (Mt. McKinley) is the highest point in North America and Death Valley the lowest point on the continent
United States - People 2017
top of pagePopulation
Distribution: large urban clusters are spread throughout the eastern half of the US (particularly the Great Lakes area northeast east and southeast) and the western tier states; mountainous areas principally the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian chain deserts in the southwest the dense boreal forests in the extreme north and the central prarie states are less densely populated; Alaska's population is concentrated along its southern coast - with particular emphasis on the city of Anchorage - and Hawaii's is centered on the island of Oahu: 326,625,791 (July 2017 est.)
Rank: 3
Growth rate: 0.81% (2017 est.)
Growth rate rank: 136
Below poverty line: 15.1% (2010 est.)
Ethnic groups: white 72.4% black 12.6% Asian 4.8% Amerindian and Alaska native 0.9% native Hawaiian and other Pacific islander 0.2% other 6.2% two or more races 2.9% (2010 estimate)
Note: a separate listing for Hispanic is not included because the US Census Bureau considers Hispanic to mean persons of Spanish/Hispanic/Latino origin including those of Mexican Cuban Puerto Rican Dominican Republic Spanish and Central or South American origin living in the US who may be of any race or ethnic group ; an estimated 16.3% of the total US population is Hispanic as of 2010
Languages: English 79% Spanish 13% other Indo-European 3.7% Asian and Pacific island 3.4% other 1% (2015 est.)
Note: data represent the language spoken at home; the US has no official national language but English has acquired official status in 32 of the 50 states; Hawaiian is an official language in the state of Hawaii and 20 indigenous languages are official in Alaska
Religions: Protestant 46.5% Roman Catholic 20.8% Jewish 1.9% Mormon 1.6% other Christian 0.9% Muslim 0.9% Jehovah's Witness 0.8% Buddhist 0.7% Hindu 0.7% other 1.8% unaffiliated 22.8% don't know/refused 0.6% (2014 est.)
Age structure
0-14 years: 18.73%
15-24 years: 13.27%
25-54 years: 39.45%
55-64 years: 12.91%
65 years and over: 15.63% (2017 est.)
Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 51.2
Youth dependency ratio: 29
Elderly dependency ratio: 22.1
Potential support ratio: 4.5
Population distribution: large urban clusters are spread throughout the eastern half of the US (particularly the Great Lakes area northeast east and southeast) and the western tier states; mountainous areas principally the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian chain deserts in the southwest the dense boreal forests in the extreme north and the central prarie states are less densely populated; Alaska's population is concentrated along its southern coast - with particular emphasis on the city of Anchorage - and Hawaii's is centered on the island of Oahu
Urbanization
Urban population: 82% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 0.99% annual rate of change
Major urban areas
Population: New York-Newark 18.593 million; Los Angeles-Long Beach-Santa Ana 12.31 million; Chicago 8.745 million; Miami 5.817 million; Dallas-Fort Worth 5.703 million; WASHINGTON D.C. (capital) 4.955 million (2015)
Environment
Current issues: large emitter of carbon dioxide from the burning of fossil fuels; air pollution resulting in acid rain in both the US and Canada; water pollution from runoff of pesticides and fertilizers; limited natural freshwater resources in much of the western part of the country require careful management; desertification
International agreements party to: Air Pollution Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides Antarctic-Environmental Protocol Antarctic-Marine Living Resources Antarctic Seals Antarctic Treaty Climate Change Desertification Endangered Species Environmental Modification Marine Dumping Marine Life Conservation Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Tropical Timber 83 Tropical Timber 94 Wetlands Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds Biodiversity Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Hazardous Wastes
Sex ratio
At birth: NA
0-14 years: 1.04 male/female
15-24 years: 1.05 male/female
25-54 years: 1 male/female
55-64 years: 0.93 male/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male/female
Total population: 0.97 male/female
Infant mortality rate
Total: 5.8 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 6.3 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 5.3 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 170
Drinking water source:
urban: 99.4% of population
rural: 98.2% of population
total: 99.2% of population
urban: 0.6% of population
rural: 1.8% of population
total: 0.8% of population (2015 est.)
rural: 98.2% of population
total: 99.2% of population
urban: 0.6% of population
rural: 1.8% of population
total: 0.8% of population (2015 est.)
Sanitation facility access:
urban: 100% of population
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2015 est.)
rural: 100% of population
total: 100% of population
urban: 0% of population
rural: 0% of population
total: 0% of population (2015 est.)
United States - Government 2017
top of pageCountry name
Conventional long form: United States of America
Conventional short form: United States
Abbreviation: US or USA
Etymology: the name America is derived from that of Amerigo VESPUCCI - Italian explorer navigator and cartographer - using the Latin form of his name Americus feminized to America
Capital
Name: Washington DC
Geographic coordinates: 38 53 N 77 02 W
Time difference: UTC-5
Daylight saving time: +1hr begins second Sunday in March; ends first Sunday in November
Note: the 50 United States cover six time zones
Administrative divisions: 50 states and 1 district*; Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware District of Columbia* Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming
Dependent areas: (14) American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Wake Island
Note: from 18 July 1947 until 1 October 1994 the US administered the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands; it entered into a political relationship with all four political entities: the Northern Mariana Islands is a commonwealth in political union with the US ; the Republic of the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 21 October 1986); the Federated States of Micronesia signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 3 November 1986); Palau concluded a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 1 October 1994)
Independence: 4 July 1776 (declared independence from Great Britain); 3 September 1783 (recognized by Great Britain)
Constitution: previous 1781 (Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union); latest drafted July - September 1787 submitted to the Congress of the Confederation 20 September 1787 submitted for states' ratification 28 September 1787 ratification completed by nine states 21 June 1788 effective 4 March 1789; amended many times last in 1992 (2016)
Legal system: common law system based on English common law at the federal level; state legal systems based on common law except Louisiana which is based on Napoleonic civil code; judicial review of legislative acts
International law organization participation: withdrew acceptance of compulsory ICJ jurisdiction in 2005; withdrew acceptance of ICCt jurisdiction in 2002
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: yes
Citizenship by descent: yes
Dual citizenship recognized: no but the US government acknowledges such situtations exist; US citizens are not encouraged to seek dual citizenship since it limits protection by the US
Residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years
Executive branch
Chief of state: President Donald J. TRUMP ; Vice President Michael R. PENCE (since 20 January 2017); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Donald J. TRUMP ; Vice President Michael R. PENCE (since 20 January 2017)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president approved by the Senate
Electionsappointments: president and vice president indirectly elected on the same ballot by the Electoral College of 'electors' chosen from each state; president and vice president serve a 4-year term ; election last held on 8 November 2016 (next to be held on 10 November 2020)
Election results: Donald J. TRUMP elected president; electoral vote - Donald J. TRUMP 304 Hillary D. CLINTON (Democratic Party) 227 other 7; percent of direct popular vote - Hillary D. CLINTON 48.2% Donald J. TRUMP 46.1% other 5.7%
Legislative branch
Description: bicameral Congress consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives (435 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote except in Georgia which requires an absolute majority vote with a second round if needed; members serve 2-year terms)
Elections: Senate - last held on 8 November 2016 ; House of Representatives - last held on 8 November 2016 (next to be held on 6 November 2018)
Election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Republican Party 24 Democratic Party 10; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Republican Party 241 Democratic Party 194
Note: in addition to the regular members of the House of Representatives there are 6 non-voting delegates elected from the District of Columbia and the US territories of American Samoa Guam Puerto Rico the Northern Mariana Islands and the Virgin Islands; these are single seat constituencies directly elected by simple majority vote to serve a 2-year term ; the delegate can vote when serving on a committee and when the House meets as the Committee of the Whole House but not when legislation is submitted for a “full floor” House vote; election of delegates last held on 8 November 2016 (next to be held on 6 November 2018)
Judicial branch
Highest court: US Supreme Court
Judge selection and term of office: president nominates and with the advice and consent of the Senate appoints Supreme Court justices; justices appointed for life
Subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal ; 94 federal district courts in 50 states and territories
Note: the US court system consists of the federal court system and the state court systems; although each court system is responsible for hearing certain types of cases neither is completely independent of the other and the systems often interact
Political parties and leaders:
Democratic Party [Tom PEREZ]
Green Party [collective leadership]
Libertarian Party [Nicholas SARWARK]
Republican Party [Ronna Romney MCDANIEL]
Green Party [collective leadership]
Libertarian Party [Nicholas SARWARK]
Republican Party [Ronna Romney MCDANIEL]
International organization participation: ADB (nonregional member) AfDB (nonregional member) ANZUS APEC Arctic Council ARF ASEAN (dialogue partner) Australia Group BIS BSEC (observer) CBSS (observer) CD CE (observer) CERN (observer) CICA (observer) CP EAPC EAS EBRD EITI (implementing country) FAO FATF G-5 G-7 G-8 G-10 G-20 IADB IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (national committees) ICRM IDA IEA IFAD IFC IFRCS IGAD (partners) IHO ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IOM ISO ITSO ITU ITUC (NGOs) MIGA MINUSMA MINUSTAH MONUSCO NAFTA NATO NEA NSG OAS OECD OPCW OSCE Pacific Alliance (observer) Paris Club PCA PIF (partner) SAARC (observer) SELEC (observer) SICA (observer) SPC UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNITAR UNMIL UNMISS UNRWA UNSC (permanent) UNTSO UPU WCO WHO WIPO WMO WTO ZC
Flag description: 13 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white; there is a blue rectangle in the upper hoist-side corner bearing 50 small white five-pointed stars arranged in nine offset horizontal rows of six stars (top and bottom) alternating with rows of five stars; the 50 stars represent the 50 states the 13 stripes represent the 13 original colonies; the blue stands for loyalty devotion truth justice and friendship; red symbolizes courage zeal and fervency while white denotes purity and rectitude of conduct; commonly referred to by its nickname of Old Glory
Note: the design and colors have been the basis for a number of other flags including Chile Liberia Malaysia and Puerto Rico
National anthem
Name: 'The Star-Spangled Banner'
Lyrics and music: Francis Scott KEY/John Stafford SMITH
Note: adopted 1931; during the War of 1812 after witnessing the successful American defense of Fort McHenry in Baltimore following British naval bombardment Francis Scott KEY wrote the lyrics to what would become the national anthem; the lyrics were set to the tune of 'The Anacreontic Song'; only the first verse is sung
United States - Economy 2017
top of pageEconomy overview:
In July 2010 the president signed the DODD-FRANK Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act a law designed to promote financial stability by protecting consumers from financial abuses ending taxpayer bailouts of financial firms dealing with troubled banks that are 'too big to fail' and improving accountability and transparency in the financial system - in particular by requiring certain financial derivatives to be traded in markets that are subject to government regulation and oversight.
In December 2012 the Federal Reserve Board (Fed) announced plans to purchase $85 billion per month of mortgage-backed and Treasury securities in an effort to hold down long-term interest rates and to keep short-term rates near zero until unemployment dropped below 6.5% or inflation rose above 2.5%. In late 2013 the Fed announced that it would begin scaling back long-term bond purchases to $75 billion per month in January 2014 and further reduce them as conditions warranted; the Fed ended the purchases during the summer of 2014. In 2014 the unemployment rate dropped to 6.2% and continued to fall to 5.5% by mid-2015 the lowest rate of joblessness since before the global recession began; inflation stood at 1.7% and public debt as a share of GDP continued to decline following several years of increases. In December 2015 the Fed raised its target for the benchmark federal funds rate by 0.25% the first increase since the recession began. With US GDP growth below 2% the Fed has opted to raise rates three times since then and in mid-June 2017 the range for the target rate stood at 1% to 1.25%.
In December 2012 the Federal Reserve Board (Fed) announced plans to purchase $85 billion per month of mortgage-backed and Treasury securities in an effort to hold down long-term interest rates and to keep short-term rates near zero until unemployment dropped below 6.5% or inflation rose above 2.5%. In late 2013 the Fed announced that it would begin scaling back long-term bond purchases to $75 billion per month in January 2014 and further reduce them as conditions warranted; the Fed ended the purchases during the summer of 2014. In 2014 the unemployment rate dropped to 6.2% and continued to fall to 5.5% by mid-2015 the lowest rate of joblessness since before the global recession began; inflation stood at 1.7% and public debt as a share of GDP continued to decline following several years of increases. In December 2015 the Fed raised its target for the benchmark federal funds rate by 0.25% the first increase since the recession began. With US GDP growth below 2% the Fed has opted to raise rates three times since then and in mid-June 2017 the range for the target rate stood at 1% to 1.25%.
Real gdp purchasing power parity:
$18.62 trillion (2016 est.)
$18.12 trillion (2015 est.)
$17.43 trillion (2014 est.)
$18.12 trillion (2015 est.)
$17.43 trillion (2014 est.)
Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 3
Real gdp per capita:
$57,600 (2016 est.)
$57,200 (2015 est.)
$56,000 (2014 est.)
$57,200 (2015 est.)
$56,000 (2014 est.)
Note: data are in 2016 dollars
Rank: 20
Gross national saving:
18% of GDP (2016 est.)
19.4% of GDP (2015 est.)
19.3% of GDP (2014 est.)
19.4% of GDP (2015 est.)
19.3% of GDP (2014 est.)
Rank: 135
Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 68.8%
Government consumption: 17.5%
Investment in fixed capital: 16.2%
Investment in inventories: 0.2%
Exports of goods and services: 11.9%
Imports of goods and services: -14.7%
Agriculture products: wheat corn other grains fruits vegetables cotton; beef pork poultry dairy products; fish; forest products
Industries: highly diversified world leading high-technology innovator second-largest industrial output in the world; petroleum steel motor vehicles aerospace telecommunications chemicals electronics food processing consumer goods lumber mining
Labor force: 159.2 million
Note: (2009)
Rank: 4
By occupation farming forestry and fishing: 0.7%
By occupation manufacturing extraction transportation and crafts: 20.3%
By occupation managerial professional and technical: 37.3%
By occupation sales and office: 24.2%
By occupation other services: 17.6%
By occupation note: figures exclude the unemployed
Budget
Revenues: $3.267 trillion
Expenditures: $3.852 trillion
Note: for the US revenues exclude social contributions of approximately $1.0 trillion; expenditures exclude social benefits of approximately $2.3 trillion
Surplus or deficit: -3.2% of GDP (2016 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 123
Taxes and other revenues: 17.6% of GDP
Note: excludes contributions for social security and other programs; if social contributions were added taxes and other revenues would amount to approximately 22% of GDP
Rank: 170
Public debt:
76.5% of GDP (2016 est.)
72.9% of GDP (2015 est.)
72.9% of GDP (2015 est.)
Note: data cover only what the United States Treasury denotes as 'Debt Held by the Public' which includes all debt instruments issued by the Treasury that are owned by non-US Government entities; the data include Treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data exclude debt issued by individual US states as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of Treasury borrowings from surpluses in the trusts for Federal Social Security Federal Employees Hospital and Supplemental Medical Insurance Disability and Unemployment and several other smaller trusts; if data for intra-government debt were added 'gross debt' would increase by about one-third of GDP
Rank: 43
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
3.51% (31 December 2016 est.)
3.26% (31 December 2015 est.)
3.26% (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 161
Stock of narrow money:
$3.25 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$3.021 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
$3.021 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 4
Stock of broad money:
$13.17 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$12.02 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
$12.02 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 2
Stock of domestic credit:
$20.24 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$19.26 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
$19.26 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 2
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$25.07 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
$26.33 trillion (31 December 2014 est.)
$24.03 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)
$26.33 trillion (31 December 2014 est.)
$24.03 trillion (31 December 2013 est.)
Rank: 1
Exports:
$1.456 trillion (2016 est.)
$1.511 trillion (2015 est.)
$1.511 trillion (2015 est.)
Rank: 3
Commodities: agricultural products (soybeans fruit corn) 9.2% industrial supplies (organic chemicals) 26.8% capital goods (transistors aircraft motor vehicle parts computers telecommunications equipment) 49.0% consumer goods (automobiles medicines) 15.0% (2008 est.)
Partners: Canada 18.3% Mexico 15.9% China 8% Japan 4.4% (2016)
Imports:
$2.208 trillion (2016 est.)
$2.273 trillion (2015 est.)
$2.273 trillion (2015 est.)
Rank: 1
Commodities: agricultural products 4.9% industrial supplies 32.9% (crude oil 8.2%) capital goods 30.4% (computers telecommunications equipment motor vehicle parts office machines electric power machinery) consumer goods 31.8% (automobiles clothing medicines furniture toys) (2008 est.)
Partners: China 21.1% Mexico 13.4% Canada 12.7% Japan 6% Germany 5.2% (2016)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$117.3 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$117.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
$117.6 billion (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 20
Debt external:
$17.91 trillion (31 March 2016 est.)
$17.85 trillion (31 March 2015 est.)
$17.85 trillion (31 March 2015 est.)
Note: approximately 4/5ths of US external debt is denominated in US dollars; foreign lenders have been willing to hold US dollar denominated debt instruments because they view the dollar as the world's reserve currency
Rank: 1
Stock of direct foreign investment at home:
$3.614 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$3.134 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
$3.134 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 3
Stock of direct foreign investment abroad:
$5.352 trillion (31 December 2016 est.)
$5.041 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
$5.041 trillion (31 December 2015 est.)
Rank: 3
Exchange rates
British pounds per US dollar: 0.7391 0.6542 (2015 est.) 0.607 (2014 est) 0.6391 (2013 est.) 0.6324 (2012 est.)
Canadian dollars per US dollar: 1 1.331 1.2788 (2015 est.) 1.1047 (2014 est.) 1.0298 (2013 est.) 0.9992 (2012 est.)
Chinese yuan per US dollar: 1 6.626 6.2275 (2015 est.) 6.1434 (2014 est.) 6.1958 (2013 est.) 6.3123 (2012 est.)
Euros per US dollar: 0.9214 0.885 (2015 est.) 0.7525 (2014 est.) 0.7634 (2013 est.) 0.7752 (2012 est.)
Japanese yen per US dollar: 107.1 121.02 (2015 est.) 105.86 (2014 est.) 97.44 (2013 est.) 79.79 (2012 est.)
United States - Energy 2017
top of pageElectricity
Access electrification total population: 100%
Production: 4.088 trillion kWh (2015 est.)
Production rank: 2
Consumption: 3.911 trillion kWh (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 2
Exports: 9.695 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Exports rank: 25
Imports: 80.66 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Imports rank: 2
Installed generating capacity: 1.074 billion kW (2015 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 3
Generation sources fossil fuels: 70.6% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 103
Generation sources nuclear: 9.2% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 18
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 7.4% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 124
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0% of total installed capacity (2015 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 210
Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 8.853 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 3
Crude oil exports: 590,900 bbl/day (2016 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 21
Crude oil imports: 7.85 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 1
Crude oil proven reserves: 36.52 billion bbl (1 January 2017 es)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 11
Refined petroleum
Products production: 20.08 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products production rank: 1
Products consumption: 19.69 million bbl/day (2015 est.)
Products consumption rank: 1
Products exports: 4.67 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products exports rank: 1
Products imports: 2.205 million bbl/day (2016 est.)
Products imports rank: 2
Natural gas
Production: 766.2 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Production rank: 1
Consumption: 773.2 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Consumption rank: 1
Exports: 50.52 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Exports rank: 7
Imports: 76.96 billion m³ (2015 est.)
Imports rank: 4
Proven reserves: 8.714 trillion m³ (1 January 2016 es)
Proven reserves rank: 4
Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 5.402 billion Mt (2013 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 2
United States - Communication 2017
top of pageTelephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 121.53 million
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 38
Fixed lines rank: 3
Mobile cellular total: 416.684 million
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 129
Mobile cellular rank: 5
Telephone system
General assessment: a large technologically advanced multipurpose communications system
Domestic: a large system of fiber-optic cable microwave radio relay coaxial cable and domestic satellites carries every form of telephone traffic; a rapidly growing cellular system carries mobile telephone traffic throughout the country
International: country code - 1; multiple ocean cable systems provide international connectivity; satellite earth stations - 61 Intelsat 5 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region) and 4 Inmarsat (Pacific and Atlantic Ocean regions) (2016)
Broadcast media: 4 major terrestrial TV networks with affiliate stations throughout the country plus cable and satellite networks independent stations and a limited public broadcasting sector that is largely supported by private grants; overall thousands of TV stations broadcasting; multiple national radio networks with many affiliate stations; while most stations are commercial National Public Radio (NPR) has a network of some 600 member stations; satellite radio available; overall nearly 15,000 radio stations operating (2008)
United States - Military 2017
top of pageMilitary expenditures:
3.29% of GDP (2016)
3.3% of GDP (2015)
3.51% of GDP (2014)
3.83% of GDP (2013)
4.24% of GDP (2012)
3.3% of GDP (2015)
3.51% of GDP (2014)
3.83% of GDP (2013)
4.24% of GDP (2012)
Rank: 9
Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age (17 years of age with parental consent) for male and female voluntary service; no conscription; maximum enlistment age 42 (Army) 27 (Air Force) 34 (Navy) 28 (Marines); 8-year service obligation including 2-5 years active duty (Army) 2 years active (Navy) 4 years active (Air Force Marines); all military occupations and positions open to women (2016)
United States - Transportation 2017
top of pageNational air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 92
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 6,817
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 798.23 million
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 37.219 billion mt-km
Airports: 13,513 (2013)
Rank: 1
With paved runways total: 5,054
With paved runways over 3047 m: 189
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 235
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1478
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2,249
With paved runways under 914 m: 903
With unpaved runways total: 8,459
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 6
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 140
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 1552
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 6,760
Waterways: 41,009 km (19,312 km used for commerce; Saint Lawrence Seaway of 3,769 km including the Saint Lawrence River of 3,058 km is shared with Canada) (2012)
Rank: 5
Merchant marine
Total: 3,611
By type: bulk carrier 5 container ship 61 general cargo 114 oil tanker 66 other 3,365
Rank: 5
Ports and terminals
Cargo ports: Baton Rouge Corpus Christi Hampton Roads Houston Long Beach Los Angeles New Orleans New York Plaquemines Tampa Texas City
Container port: Hampton Roads (2,549,000) Houston (2,131,000) Long Beach (7,192,000) Los Angeles (8,160,000) New York/New Jersey (6,372,000) Oakland (2,278,000) Savannah (3,737,000) Seattle (3,531,000) (2015)
Cruise departure ports: Miami (2,032,000) Port Everglades (1,277,000) Port Canaveral (1,189,000) Seattle (430,000) Long Beach (415,000) (2009)
Oil terminal: LOOP terminal Haymark terminal
LNG terminal:
Cove Point (MD) Elba Island (GA) Everett (MA) Freeport (TX) Golden Pass (TX) Hackberry (LA) Lake Charles (LA) Neptune (offshore) Northeast Gateway (offshore) Pascagoula (MS) Sabine Pass (TX)
Kenai (AK)
Kenai (AK)
United States - Transnational issues 2017
top of pageDisputes international: the US has intensified domestic security measures and is collaborating closely with its neighbors Canada and Mexico to monitor and control legal and illegal personnel transport and commodities across the international borders; abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US border region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing arrangements; 1990 Maritime Boundary Agreement in the Bering Sea still awaits Russian Duma ratification; Canada and the United States dispute how to divide the Beaufort Sea and the status of the Northwest Passage but continue to work cooperatively to survey the Arctic continental shelf; The Bahamas and US have not been able to agree on a maritime boundary; US Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay is leased from Cuba and only mutual agreement or US abandonment of the area can terminate the lease; Haiti claims US-administered Navassa Island; US has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other states; Marshall Islands claims Wake Island; Tokelau included American Samoa's Swains Island among the islands listed in its 2006 draft constitution
Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: the US admitted 84,994 refugees during FY2016 including: 16,370 (Democratic Republic of the Congo); 12,587 (Syria); 12,347 (Burma); 9,880 (Iraq); 9,020 (Somalia); 5,817 (Bhutan); 3,750 (Iran)
Illicit drugs
Rank: li>a href='../rankorder/rankorderguide.html'>Guide to Country Comparisons: world's largest consumer of cocaine (shipped from Colombia through Mexico and the Caribbean) Colombian heroin and Mexican heroin and marijuana; major consumer of ecstasy and Mexican methamphetamine; minor consumer of high-quality Southeast Asian heroin; illicit producer of cannabis marijuana depressants stimulants hallucinogens and methamphetamine; money-laundering center
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