Luxembourg   source: CIA World Factbook 1998

[Top of Page]

Location: Western Europe, between France and Germany

Geographic coordinates: 49 45 N, 6 10 E

Map references: Europe

Area:
total: 2,586 sq km
land: 2,586 sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area—comparative: slightly smaller than Rhode Island

Land boundaries:
total: 359 km
border countries: Belgium 148 km, France 73 km, Germany 138 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: modified continental with mild winters, cool summers

Terrain: mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope down to Moselle floodplain in the southeast

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Moselle River 133 m
highest point: Burgplatz 559 m

Natural resources: iron ore (no longer exploited)

Land use:
arable land: 24%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 20%
forests and woodland: 21%
other: 34%

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: NA

Environment—current issues: air and water pollution in urban areas

Environment—international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea

Geography—note: landlocked

[Top of Page]

Population: 425,017 (July 1998 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 18% (male 39,565; female 37,824)
15-64 years: 67% (male 145,060; female 139,628)
65 years and over: 15% (male 25,449; female 37,491) (July 1998 est.)

Population growth rate: 1.02% (1998 est.)

Birth rate: 11.12 births/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Death rate: 9.29 deaths/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Net migration rate: 8.4 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1998 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female (1998 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 5.04 deaths/1,000 live births (1998 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.49 years
male: 74.41 years
female: 80.68 years (1998 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.63 children born/woman (1998 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Luxembourger(s)
adjective: Luxembourg

Ethnic groups: Celtic base (with French and German blend), Portuguese, Italian, and European (guest and worker residents)

Religions: Roman Catholic 97%, Protestant and Jewish 3%

Languages: Luxembourgian, German, French, English

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 100%
male: 100%
female: 100% (1980 est.)

[Top of Page]

Country name:
conventional long form: Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
conventional short form: Luxembourg
local long form: Grand-Duche de Luxembourg
local short form: Luxembourg

Data code: LU

Government type: constitutional monarchy

National capital: Luxembourg

Administrative divisions: 3 districts; Diekirch, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg

Independence: 1839

National holiday: National Day, 23 June (1921) (public celebration of the Grand Duke's birthday)

Constitution: 17 October 1868, occasional revisions

Legal system: based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch:
chief of state: Grand Duke JEAN (since 12 November 1964); Heir Apparent Prince HENRI (son of Grand Duke JEAN, born 16 April 1955)
head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Claude JUNCKER (since 1 January 1995) and Vice Prime Minister Jacques F. POOS (since 21 July 1984)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the sovereign, responsible to the Chamber of Deputies
elections: none; the grand duke is a hereditary monarch; prime minister and vice prime minister appointed by the sovereign but are responsible to the Chamber of Deputies

Legislative branch: unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (60 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 12 June 1994 (next to be held by June 1999)
election results: percent of vote by party—NA; seats by party—CSV 21, LSAP 17, DP 12, Action Committee for Democracy and Pension Rights 5, Greens 5
note: the Council of State or Conseil d'Etat, which has 21 members who are appointed for life, is an advisory body whose views are considered by the Chamber of Deputies

Judicial branch: Superior Court of Justice or Cour Superieure de Justice, judges are appointed for life by the Grand Duke; Administrative Court or Tribunale Administratin, judges are appointed for life by the Grand Duke

Political parties and leaders: Christian Social People's Party or CSV [Erna HENNICOT-SCHOEPGES]; Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party or LSAP [Ben FAYOT]; Democratic Party or DP [Lydie Wurth POLFER]; Action Committee for Democracy and Pension Rights [Roby MEHLEN]; the Green Alternative [Abbes JACOBY]; other minor parties

Political pressure groups and leaders: group of steel companies representing iron and steel industry; Centrale Paysanne representing agricultural producers; Christian and Socialist labor unions; Federation of Industrialists; Artisans and Shopkeepers Federation

International organization participation: ACCT, Australia Group, Benelux, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ITU, MTCR, NATO, NEA, NSG, OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Alphonse BERNS
chancery: 2200 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 265-4171
FAX: [1] (202) 328-8270
consulate(s) general: New York and San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Clay CONSTANTINOU
embassy: 22 Boulevard Emmanuel-Servais, 2535 Luxembourg City
mailing address: American Embassy Luxembourg, Unit 1410, APO AE 09126-1410 (official mail); American Embassy Luxembourg, PSC 9, Box 9500, APO AE 09123 (personal mail)
telephone: [352] 46 01 23
FAX: [352] 46 14 01

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and light blue; similar to the flag of the Netherlands, which uses a darker blue and is shorter; design was based on the flag of France

[Top of Page]

Economy—overview: The stable, prosperous economy features moderate growth, low inflation, and low unemployment. Agriculture is based on small family-owned farms. The industrial sector, until recently dominated by steel, has become increasingly more diversified. During the past decades, growth in the financial sector has more than compensated for the decline in steel. Services, especially banking, account for a growing proportion of the economy. Luxembourg participates in an economic union with Belgium on trade and most financial matters, is also closely connected economically to the Netherlands, and, as a member of the EU, enjoys the advantages of the open European market.

GDP: purchasing power parity—$13.48 billion (1997 est.)

GDP—real growth rate: 3.6% (1997 est.)

GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity—$33,700 (1997 est.)

GDP—composition by sector:
agriculture: 5%
industry: 21%
services: 74% (1995)

Inflation rate—consumer price index: 2.3% (1995)

Labor force:
total: 213,100 (one-third of labor force is foreign workers, mostly from Portugal, Italy, France, Belgium, and Germany)
by occupation: trade, restaurants, hotels 20%, mining, quarrying, manufacturing 16%, other market services 18%, community, social, personal services 14%, construction 11%, finance, insurance, real estate, business services 9%, transport, storage, communications 8%, agriculture, hunting, forestry, fishing 1%, electricity, gas, water 1% (1995 est.)

Unemployment rate: 3.5% (1997)

Budget:
revenues: $5.46 billion
expenditures: $5.44 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997 est.)

Industries: banking, iron and steel, food processing, chemicals, metal products, engineering, tires, glass, aluminum

Industrial production growth rate: 3.3% (1995 est.)

Electricity—capacity: 138,000 kW (1995)

Electricity—production: 470 million kWh (1995)

Electricity—consumption per capita: 13,518 kWh (1995)

Agriculture—products: barley, oats, potatoes, wheat, fruits, wine grapes; livestock products

Exports:
total value: $7.1 billion (f.o.b., 1996)
commodities: finished steel products, chemicals, rubber products, glass, aluminum, other industrial products
partners: Germany 28%, France 18%, Belgium 15%, UK 7%, Netherlands 5%

Imports:
total value: $9.4 billion (c.i.f., 1996)
commodities: minerals, metals, foodstuffs, quality consumer goods
partners: Belgium 38%, Germany 25%, France 11%, Netherlands 4%

Debt—external: $NA

Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $50 million (1993)

Currency: 1 Luxembourg franc (LuxF) = 100 centimes; note—centimes no longer in use

Exchange rates: Luxembourg francs (LuxF) per US$1—37.459 (January 1998), 35.774 (1997), 30.962 (1996), 29.480 (1995), 33.456 (1994), 34.597 (1993); note—the Luxembourg franc is at par with the Belgian franc, which circulates freely in Luxembourg

Fiscal year: calendar year

[Top of Page]

Telephones: 221,900 (1994 est.)

Telephone system: highly developed, completely automated and efficient system, mainly buried cables
domestic: nationwide cellular telephone system; buried cable
international: 3 channels leased on TAT-6 coaxial submarine cable (Europe to North America)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 6, shortwave 0

Radios: 230,000 (1993 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 1 plus 1 direct-broadcast satellite link

Televisions: 100,500 (1993 est.)

[Top of Page]

Railways:
total: 275 km
standard gauge: 275 km 1.435-m gauge (262 km electrified; 178 km double track) (1995)

Highways:
total: 5,160 km
paved: 5,160 km (including 115 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (1996 est.)

Waterways: 37 km; Moselle

Pipelines: petroleum products 48 km

Ports and harbors: Mertert

Merchant marine:
total: 32 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 775,336 GRT/1,028,012 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 1, chemical tanker 1, container 3, liquefied gas tanker 11, oil tanker 5, passenger 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 8 (1997 est.)

Airports: 2 (1997 est.)

Airports—with paved runways:
total: 1
over 3,047 m: 1 (1997 est.)

Airports—with unpaved runways:
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (1997 est.)

[Top of Page]

Military branches: Army, National Gendarmerie

Military manpower—military age: 19 years of age

Military manpower—availability:
males age 15-49: 108,111 (1998 est.)

Military manpower—fit for military service:
males: 88,807 (1998 est.)

Military manpower—reaching military age annually:
males: 2,388 (1998 est.)

Military expenditures—dollar figure: $142 million (1995)

Military expenditures—percent of GDP: 0.8% (1995)

[Top of Page]

Disputes—international: none