1. República Argentina ~ Stefan Stoev Argentine Republic Capital: Buenos Aires

2. Basic facts Neighbors: Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia and Chile Administrative Divisions: 23 provinces and 1 federal district Climate: temperate, with extremes ranging from subtropical in the north to subpolar in the south Natural Resources: fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium Government: Federal Republic President: Néstor Kirchner Currency: Argentine Peso(ARS)

3. Geography/Demography Area: 2,766,890 sq km (1,068,296 sq mi) Population: 40,301,927 Population density: 14.46/sq km Population growth rate: 0.938 Net migration rate: 0.4 migrants/1000 population Life expectancy: total population: 76.32 years male: 72.6 years female: 80.24 years Ethnic groups: 97% white, 3% others Religion: 92% Roman-catholic, 2% Protestant, 2% Jewish, 4% others Language: Spanish

4. Economy GDP(PPP): $599.1 billion GDP(official exchange rate): $210 billion GDP per capita (PPP): $15,000 GDP Growth rate: 8.5%(2006) GDP composition by sectors: agriculture—9.5% industry—35.8% services—54.7% Inflation Rate: 10% Unemployment Rate: 10.2% Government Budget: expenditures—$47.6 billion revenues—$52.1 billion balance—$4.5 billion Outstanding public debt: 62.2% of GDP Current Account Balance: $5.81 billion

5. Imports/Exports Export commodities: edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles Export partners: Brazil(15,8%), US(11,4%), Chile(11,2%), China(7,9%) Import commodities: machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics Import Partners: Brazil(35,9%), US(14,1%), China(7,8%), Germany(4,5%)

6. Local Trade Agreements Mercosur—central part of the Argentine foreign policy FTAA—after 2005, marked a split between Mercosur and NAFTA countries 294 bilateral agreements

7. Fiscal Policy A positive growth through the 1990’s under Menem. Financial crisis and default in 2001 due to high debt, high budget deficit and negative account balance Budget surplus and increased tax collection since the crisis of 2001-2002

8. Monetary Policy Problems with inflation The peso had a fixed exchange rate to the USD since 1991 which stopped the inflation The peso was let to float in 2002 due to the crisis; this led to a quick depreciation Inflation again became a problem after 2002

9. Social Programs Population below poverty line: 31.4% Unemployment: 10.2% High income inequality (gini coeff. of 0.64) Good healthcare and social security services High literacy and universal education

10. External Relations Good external relations with most countries Currently increased ties with Hugo Chavez (Venezuela) Dispute with UK for the Falkland islands Disputes with Uruguay

11. Reference The CIA(2007), CIA World Factbook: Argentina. Retrieved May 16, 2007 from http://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ar.html The Economist, The Economist Intelligence Unit. Retrieved May 15, 2007 from http://economist.com/countries/Argentina/ Encyclopedia Britannica (2007). Argentina. Retrieved May 20, 2007 from http://search.eb.com/eb/article-9109725 Central bank of Argentina (2007). Monetary Policy. Retrieved May 16, 2007 from http://www.bcra.gov.ar/ Argentine Government (2007). Economy. Retrieved May 20, 2007 from http://www.argentina.gov.ar/argentina/portal/paginas.dhtml?pagina=391 BBC News (2007). Country Profiles: Argentina. Retrieved May 21, 2007 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/country_profiles/1192478.stm Background notes. Argentina, Retrieved May 18, 2007 from http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/26516.htm