Part 277

Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Juergen CHROBOG chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: (202) 298-4000 FAX: (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Seattle

US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Ambassador Charles E. REDMAN embassy: Deichmanns Aue 29, 53170 Bonn mailing address: APO AE 09080, PSC 117, Bonn telephone: (228) 3391 FAX: (228) 339-2663 branch office: Berlin consulate(s) general: Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich, and Stuttgart

Flag: three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and yellow

Economy -------

Economic overview: Germany, the world's third-most powerful economy, faces its own unique problem of bringing its eastern area up to scratch after 45 years of communist rule. Despite substantial progress toward economic integration, the eastern states will continue to rely on subsidies from the federal government into the next century. Assistance to the east of about $100 billion annually has helped the region average nearly 8% annual economic growth since 1991, even though the overall German economy has averaged less than 2% growth. The economic recovery in the east has been led by the construction industries, with growth increasingly supported by the service sectors and light manufacturing industries. Western Germany, which accounts for 90% of overall German GDP and has three times the per capita income of eastern Germany, is perennially the first- or second-largest exporter, after the US, in the world. Nonetheless, business and political leaders have in recent years become increasingly concerned about Germany's apparent decline in attractiveness as a business location. They cite the increasing preference of German companies to locate manufacturing facilities - long the strength of the postwar economy - to foreign countries, including the US, rather than in Germany, so they can be closer to their markets and avoid Germany's high production costs. The conditions under which European economic integration - especially movement toward a single European currency - will proceed will be another key issue facing Germany in the next few years.

GDP: Germany: purchasing power parity - $1.4522 trillion (1995 est.) western: purchasing power parity - $1.3318 trillion (1995 est.) eastern: purchasing power parity - $120.4 billion (1995 est.)

GDP real growth rate: Germany: 1.8% (1995 est.) western: 1.5% (1995 est.) eastern: 6.3% (1995 est.)

GDP per capita: Germany: $17,900 (1995 est.) western: $21,100 (1995 est.) eastern: $6,600 (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector: agriculture: 1% industry: 34.2% services: 64.8% (1994)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): western: 2% (1995 est.) eastern: 2% (1995 est.)

Labor force: 36.75 million by occupation: industry 41%, agriculture 6%, other 53% (1987)

Unemployment rate: western: 8.7% (December 1995) eastern: 14.9% (December 1995)

Budget: revenues: $690 billion expenditures: $780 billion, including capital expenditures of $96.5 billion (1994)

Industries: western: among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages eastern: metal fabrication, chemicals, brown coal, shipbuilding, machine building, food and beverages, textiles, petroleum refining

Industrial production growth rate: western: 2.8% (1994) eastern: NA%

Electricity: capacity: 115,430,000 kW production: 493 billion kWh consumption per capita: 5,683 kWh (1993)

Agriculture: western: potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbage; cattle, pigs, poultry eastern: wheat, rye, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, fruit; pork, beef, chicken, milk, hides

Illicit drugs: source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin and Latin American cocaine for West European markets

Exports: $437 billion (f.o.b., 1994) commodities: manufactures 89.3% (including machines and machine tools, chemicals, motor vehicles, iron and steel products), agricultural products 5.5%, raw materials 2.7%, fuels 1.3% (1993) partners: EC 47.9% (France 11.7%, Netherlands 7.4%, Italy 7.5%, UK 7.7%, Belgium-Luxembourg 6.6%), EFTA 15.5%, US 7.7%, Eastern Europe 5.2%, OPEC 3.0% (1993)

Imports: $362 billion (f.o.b., 1994) commodities: manufactures 75.1%, agricultural products 10.0%, fuels 8.3%, raw materials 5.0% (1993) partners: EC 46.4% (France 11.3%, Netherlands 8.4%, Italy 8.1%, UK 6.0%, Belgium-Luxembourg 5.7%), EFTA 14.3%, US 7.3%, Japan 6.3%, Eastern Europe 5.1%, OPEC 2.6% (1993)

External debt: $NA

Economic aid: donor: ODA, $6.954 billion (1993)

Currency: 1 deutsche mark (DM) = 100 pfennige

Exchange rates: deutsche marks (DM) per US$1 - 1.4617 (January 1996), 1.4331 (1995), 1.6228 (1994), 1.6533 (1993), 1.5617 (1992), 1.6595 (1991)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Transportation --------------

Railways: total: 43,966 km standard gauge: 43,531 km 1.435-m; 40,355 km are owned by Deutsche Bahn AG (DB); 17,015 km of the DB system are electrified and 16,941 km are double- or more-tracked narrow gauge: 389 km 1.000-m gauge (DB operates 146 km of 1.000-m gauge); 7 km 0.900-m gauge; 39 km 0.750-m gauge note: in addition to the DB system there are 54 privately-owned industrial or excursion railways, ranging in route length from 2 km to 632 km, with a total length of 3,465 km (1995)

Highways: total: 636,282 km paved: 531,018 km (including 10,955 km of expressways) unpaved: 105,264 km (1991 est.)