Home>Europe>Austria

Background: Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in World War I. After the annexation to Nazi Germany in 1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allied powers, Austria's 1955 State Treaty declared the country "permanently neutral" as a condition of the Soviet military withdrawal. The Soviet collapse relieved the external pressure to remain unaligned, but neutrality had evolved into a part of Austrian cultural identity, which has led to an ongoing public debate over whether Vienna legitimately can remain outside of European security structures. A wealthy country, Austria joined the European Union in 1995 and, like many EU members, is adjusting to the new European currency and struggling with high unemployment.

Location: Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia

Geographic coordinates: 47 20 N, 13 20 E

Map references: Europe

Area:
total: 83,858 sq km
land: 82,738 sq km
water: 1,120 sq km

Area—comparative: slightly smaller than Maine

Land boundaries:
total: 2,562 km
border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km, Switzerland 164 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none (landlocked)

Climate: temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers

Terrain: in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m
highest point: Grossglockner 3,797 m

Natural resources: iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 17%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 23%
forests and woodland: 39%
other: 20% (1996 est.)

Irrigated land: 40 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards: NA

Environment—current issues: some forest degradation caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal- and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe

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

Geography—note: landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere

Population: 8,139,299 (July 1999 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 17% (male 702,261; female 666,310)
15-64 years: 68% (male 2,792,484; female 2,713,397)
65 years and over: 15% (male 478,071; female 786,776) (1999 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.09% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 9.62 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 10.04 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 1.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 5.1 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.48 years
male: 74.31 years
female: 80.82 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.37 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Austrian(s)
adjective: Austrian

Ethnic groups: German 99.4%, Croatian 0.3%, Slovene 0.2%, other 0.1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant 5%, other 17%

Languages: German

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1974 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Austria
conventional short form: Austria
local long form: Republik Oesterreich
local short form: Oesterreich

Data code: AU

Government type: federal republic

Capital: Vienna

Administrative divisions: 9 states (bundeslaender, singular—bundesland); Burgenland, Kaernten, Niederoesterreich, Oberoesterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol, Vorarlberg, Wien

Independence: 1156 (from Bavaria)

National holiday: National Day, 26 October (1955)

Constitution: 1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945)

Legal system: civil law system with Roman law origin; judicial review of legislative acts by the Constitutional Court; separate administrative and civil/penal supreme courts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal; compulsory for presidential elections

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Thomas KLESTIL (since 8 July 1992)
head of government: Chancellor Viktor KLIMA (since 28 January 1997); Vice Chancellor Wolfgang SCHUESSEL (since 22 April 1995)
cabinet: Council of Ministers chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor
elections: president elected by popular vote for a six-year term; presidential election last held 19 April 1998 (next to be held in the spring of 2004); chancellor chosen by the president from the majority party in the National Council; vice chancellor chosen by the president on the advice of the chancellor
election results: Thomas KLESTIL reelected president; percent of vote—Thomas KLESTIL 63%, Gertraud KNOLL 14%, Heide SCHMIDT 11%, Richard LUGNER 10%, Karl NOWAK 2%

Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung consists of Federal Council or Bundesrat (64 members; members represent each of the states on the basis of population, but with each state having at least three representatives; members serve a four- or six-year term) and the National Council or Nationalrat (183 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: National Council—last held 17 December 1995 (next to be held in the fall of 1999)
election results: National Council—percent of vote by party—SPOe 38.3%, OeVP 28.3%, FPOe 22.1%, LF 5.3%, Greens 4.6%, other 1.4%; seats by party—SPOe 71, OeVP 53, FPOe 40, LF 10, Greens 9

Judicial branch: Supreme Judicial Court or Oberster Gerichtshof; Administrative Court or Verwaltungsgerichtshof; Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgerichtshof

Political parties and leaders: Social Democratic Party of Austria or SPOe [Viktor KLIMA, chairman]; Austrian People's Party or OeVP [Wolfgang SCHUESSEL, chairman]; Freedom Party of Austria or FPOe [Joerg HAIDER, chairman]; Communist Party or KPOe [Walter BEIER, chairman]; The Greens or GA [Madeleine PETROVIC, parliamentary caucus floor leader and Alexander VAN DER BELLEN, party spokesman]; Liberal Forum or LF [Heide SCHMIDT]

Political pressure groups and leaders: Federal Chamber of Trade and Commerce; Austrian Trade Union Federation (primarily Socialist) or OeGB; three composite leagues of the Austrian People's Party or OeVP representing business, labor, and farmers; OeVP-oriented League of Austrian Industrialists or VOeI; Roman Catholic Church, including its chief lay organization, Catholic Action

International organization participation: AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CCC, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MTCR, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU (observer), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Helmut TUERK
chancery: 3524 International Court NW, Washington, DC 20008-3035
telephone: [1] (202) 895-6700
FAX: [1] (202) 895-6750
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kathryn Walt HALL
embassy: Boltzmanngasse 16, A-1091, Vienna
mailing address: use embassy street address
telephone: [43] (1) 313-39
FAX: [43] (1) 310-0682

Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and red

Economy—overview: Austria has a well-developed market economy with a high standard of living. As a member of the European Monetary Union (EMU), Austria's economy is closely integrated with other EU member countries, especially with Germany. Austria's membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market. Through privatization efforts, the 1996-98 budget consolidation programs, and austerity measures, Austria brought its total public sector deficit down to 2.5% of GDP in 1997 and public debt—at 66% of GDP in 1997—more or less in line with the 60% of GDP required by the EU's Maastricht criteria. Cuts mainly affect the civil service and Austria's generous social system, the two major causes of the government deficit. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy and deregulate the service sector, particularly telecommunications and energy. The strong GDP growth of 1998 is expected to dwindle back to 2.3% in 1999, and observers caution that this projection may be revised downwards in view of the Asian and Brazilian crises and Germany's lower growth projection.

GDP: purchasing power parity—$184.5 billion (1998 est.)

GDP—real growth rate: 2.9% (1998 est.)

GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity—$22,700 (1998 est.)

GDP—composition by sector:
agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 30.8%
services: 67.8% (1997 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.9% (1998)

Labor force: 3.7 million (1998)

Labor force—by occupation: services 67.7%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 0.7% (salaried employees, 1997 est.)

Unemployment rate: 7% (1999 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $50.4 billion
expenditures: $55.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1998 est.)

Industries: construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism (1997)

Industrial production growth rate: 4% (1998 est.)

Electricity—production: 52.15 billion kWh (1996)

Electricity—production by source:
fossil fuel: 34.4%
hydro: 65.6%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1997)

Electricity—consumption: 56.1 billion kWh (1997)

Electricity—exports: 9.8 billion kWh (1997)

Electricity—imports: 9 billion kWh (1997)

Agriculture—products: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber

Exports: $62.5 billion (1998)

Exports—commodities: vehicles, machinery and equipment, paper and paperboard, metal goods, iron and steel, telecommunication equipment, textiles, medical and pharmaceutical products (1997)

Exports—partners: EU 62% (Germany 35.1%, Italy 8.3%), Central and Eastern Europe 17.6% (Hungary 4.9%), Japan 1.3%, US 3.7% (1997)

Imports: $65.8 billion (1998)

Imports—commodities: vehicles, machinery and equipment, apparel, metal goods, oil and oil products, office and data-processing machinery, medical and pharmaceutical products, telecommunication equipment, textiles (1997)

Imports—partners: EU 68.9% (Germany 41.7%, Italy 8%), Central and Eastern Europe 11% (Hungary 3.1%), Asia 7.1% (Japan 2.2%), US 5.4% (1997)

Debt—external: $24.33 billion (1997)

Economic aid—donor: ODA, $513 million (1997); of which, bilateral $298 million, multilateral $215 million

Currency: 1 Austrian schilling (AS) = 100 groschen

Exchange rates: Austrian schillings (AS) per US$1—11.86 (January 1999), 12.379 (1998), 12.204 (1997), 10.587 (1996), 10.081 (1995), 11.422 (1994)
note: on 9 January 1999, the European Union introduced a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in some member countries at the rate of 0.8597 euros per US$ and a fixed rate of 13.7603 Austrian shillings per euro; the euro will replace the local currency in consenting countries for all transactions in 2002

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 3.47 million (1986 est.)

Telephone system:
domestic: highly developed and efficient
international: satellite earth stations—2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 2 Eutelsat

Radio broadcast stations: AM 1, FM 61 (several hundred repeaters), shortwave 1 (Austria's single shortwave station, Radio Austria International, transmits its programs to the world in six languages using 12 frequencies and six communication satellite relays) (1998)

Radios: 70% of all households had radiosaccoding to the 1993 census

Television broadcast stations: 51 (in addition, there are 920 repeaters) (1998)

Televisions: 2,418,584 (1984 est.)

Railways:
total: 5,849 km (there is also 594 km of private tracks)
standard gauge: 5,470 km 1.435-m gauge (3,418 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 379 km 1.000-m and 0.760-m gauge (84 km electrified) (1997)

Highways: 129,061 km
paved: 129,061 km (including 1,613 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (1997 est.)

Waterways: 358 km (1997)

Pipelines: crude oil 777 km; natural gas 840 km (1997)

Ports and harbors: Linz, Vienna, Enns, Krems

Merchant marine:
total: 22 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 67,066 GRT/95,693 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 18, combination bulk 2, container 1 (1998 est.)

Airports: 55 (1998 est.)

Airports—with paved runways:
total: 22
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 12 (1998 est.)

Airports—with unpaved runways:
total: 33
914 to 1,523 m: 4
under 914 m: 29 (1998 est.)

Heliports: 1 (1998 est.)

Military branches: Army (includes Flying Division)

Military manpower—military age: 19 years of age

Military manpower—availability:
males age 15-49: 2,091,902 (1999 est.)

Military manpower—fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,735,469 (1999 est.)

Military manpower—reaching military age annually:
males: 48,872 (1999 est.)

Military expenditures—dollar figure: $1.8 billion (1999 est.)

Military expenditures—percent of GDP: 0.82% (1999 est.)

Disputes—international: none

Illicit drugs: transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and South American cocaine destined for Western Europe

Source: 1999 CIA World Factbook