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Area: total: 30,528 sq km
land: 30,278 sq km
water: 250 sq km

Climate: temperate mild winters, cool summers rainy, humid, cloudy

Terrain: flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast

Natural resources: construction materials, silica sand, carbonates

Population: 10,403,951 [July 2008 est.]

Age structure: 0-14 years: 16.3% [male 864,287/female 828,435]
15-64 years: 66.3% [male 3,476,802/female 3,416,383]
65 years and over: 17.5% [male 751,745/female 1,066,299] [2008 est.]

Nationality: noun: Belgian[s]
adjective: Belgian

Ethnic groups: Fleming 58%, Walloon 31%, mixed or other 11%

Languages: Dutch [official] 60%, French [official] 40%, German [official] less than 1%, legally bilingual [Dutch and French]

Capital: name: Brussels
geographic coordinates: 50 50 N, 4 20 E
time difference: UTC+1 [6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time]
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March ends last Sunday in October

National holiday: 21 July [1831] ascension to the Throne of King LEOPOLD I

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 1.1%
industry: 24.5%
services: 74.4% [2007 est.]

Labor force: 4.96 million [2007 est.]

Budget: revenues: $219.3 billion
expenditures: $220.3 billion [2007 est.]

Agriculture - products: sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco beef, veal, pork, milk

Industries: engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum

Exports: $322.1 billion f.o.b. [2007 est.]

Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs

Exports - partners: Germany 19.7%, France 16.9%, Netherlands 12%, UK 7.9%, US 6.2%, Italy 5.2% [2006]

Imports: $322.9 billion f.o.b. [2007 est.]

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products

Imports - partners: Netherlands 18.3%, Germany 17.3%, France 11.2%, UK 6.6%, Ireland 5.7%, US 5.4% [2006]

Currency (code): euro [EUR]

Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.7345 [2007], 0.7964 [2006], 0.8041 [2005], 0.8054 [2004], 0.886 [2003]

Airports: 43 [2007]

Railways: total: 3,536 km
standard gauge: 3,536 km 1.435-m gauge [2,950 km electrified] [2006]

Merchant marine: total: 68 ships [1000 GRT or over] 3,786,089 GRT/6,074,664 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 20, cargo 5, chemical tanker 2, container 9, liquefied gas 16, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 10, roll on/roll off 5
foreign-owned: 9 [Denmark 3, France 1, Germany 1, Greece 4]
registered in other countries: 123 [Bahamas 15, Bermuda 3, Cyprus 1, France 6, Gibraltar 3, Greece 16, Hong Kong 4, Liberia 1, Luxembourg 9, Malta 10, Marshall Islands 1, Mozambique 2, Netherlands 2, Netherlands Antilles 1, Panama 11, Portugal 9, Russia 6, Sierra Leone 1, Singapore 8, St Kitts and Nevis 1, St Vincent and The Grenadines 9, Vanuatu 4] [2007]

Ports and terminals: Antwerp, Gent, Liege, Zeebrugge