Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

National name: Al-Mamlaka al-'Arabiya as-Sa'udiya

Sovereign: King Abdullah (2005)

Land area: 756,981 sq mi (1,960,582 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 27,019,731 (growth rate: 2.2%); birth rate: 29.3/1000; infant mortality rate: 12.8/1000; life expectancy: 75.7; density per sq mi: 33

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Riyadh, 3,724,100

Other large cities: Jeddah, 2,745,000; Makkah (Mecca), 1,614,800

Monetary unit: Riyal

Language: Arabic

Ethnicity/race: Arab 90%, Afro-Asian 10%

Religion: Islam 100%

Literacy rate: 79% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $340.6 billion; per capita $12,900. Real growth rate: 6.5%. Inflation: 0.4%. Unemployment: 13% male only (local bank estimate; some estimates range as high as 25%) (2004 est.). Arable land: 2%. Agriculture: wheat, barley, tomatoes, melons, dates, citrus; mutton, chickens, eggs, milk. Labor force: 6.76 million; note: more than 35% of the population in the 15–64 age group is non-national; agriculture 12%, industry 25%, services 63% (1999 est.). Industries: crude oil production, petroleum refining, basic petrochemicals; ammonia, industrial gases, sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), cement, fertilizer, plastics; metals, commercial ship repair, commercial aircraft repair, construction. Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, copper. Exports: $165 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): petroleum and petroleum products 90%. Imports: $44.93 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.): machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, motor vehicles, textiles. Major trading partners: U.S., Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Germany, UK (2004).

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 3.9 million (2002 est.); mobile cellular: 2.9 million (2002 est.). Radio broadcast stations: AM 43, FM 31, shortwave 2 (1998). Radios: 6.25 million (1997). Television broadcast stations: 117 (1997). Televisions: 5.1 million (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 22 (2003). Internet users: 1.453 million (2002).

Transportation: Railways: total: 1,392 km (2002). Highways: total: 151,470 km; paved: 45,592 km; unpaved: 105,878 km (1999). Ports and harbors: Ad Dammam, Al Jubayl, Duba, Jiddah, Jizan, Rabigh, Ra's al Khafji, Mishab, Ras Tanura, Yanbu' al Bahr, Madinat Yanbu' al Sinaiyah. Airports: 209 (2002).

International disputes: nomadic groups on border region with Yemen resist demarcation of boundary; Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have been negotiating a long-contested maritime boundary with Iran; because the treaties have not been made public, the exact alignment of the boundary with the UAE is still unknown and labeled approximate.

 

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