| Country summary | |
|---|---|
|
Capital |
Brussels |
|
Borders |
France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km, Netherlands 450 km |
|
Government type |
federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy |
|
Population |
10,414,336 (July 2010 est.)[1] |
|
Population growth |
0.094% (2010 est.)[1] |
|
Life expectancy |
79.22 years[1] |
|
Unemployment |
7.9% (2009 est.)[1] |
|
30[2] | |
|
21[3] | |
|
22[4] | |
Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830; it was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. The country prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy.[1]
Economical characteristics[]
- Currency: Euro (ISO code: EUR)
- Central bank discount rate: 3% (31 December 2008)[1]
- Commercial banks lending rate: 7.03% (31 December 2008)[1]
- is part of the Eurozone
Statistics[]
| Statistic / Year | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP (million USD)[5] | 253 833 | 231 934 | 231 663 | 251 884 | 310 074 | 359 609 | 375 714 | 399 226 | 458 389 | 504 206 |
| Govt. debt (% of GDP)[6] | 111.980 | 106.962 | 105.632 | 102.192 | 96.157 | 91.080 | 89.631 | 85.603 | 82.630 | 88.032 |
| Govt. revenue (% of GDP)[7] | 42.957 | 42.946 | 43.085 | 42.085 | 43.146 | 41.460 | 41.577 | 40.776 | 40.226 | 41.217 |
| Govt. expenses (% of GDP)[8] | 44.108 | 43.083 | 43.755 | 42.135 | 43.428 | 41.809 | 44.515 | 41.130 | 41.003 | 42.530 |
| Debt to revenue (years) | 2.607 | 2.491 | 2.452 | 2.428 | 2.229 | 2.197 | 2.156 | 2.099 | 2.054 | 2.136 |
References[]
Note: statistical data was rounded. Different sources may use different methodologies for their estimates. Debt to revenue is calculated by dividing the two variables from their original ('unrounded') values. It represents how long it would a government take to repay its entire debt if it used its whole revenue for this purpose.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 CIA - The World Facebook. "Belgium", from The World Facebook. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Heritage Foundation. "Belgium", Economic Freedom Score. A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Transparency International. "Belgium", Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. A lower ranking is better; but please note that the numbers cannot be compared between countries or years due to different methodology. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ Doing Business. "Belgium", Doing Business 2010 (part of The World Bank Group). A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Belgium: GDP", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Belgium: government debt", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Belgium: government revenue", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
- ↑ World Bank. "Belgium: government expenses", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-29.
External links[]
- Belgium on Wikipedia
- Central bank of Belgium
- BBC country profile