Broadcast media
This entry provides information on the approximate number of public and private TV and radio stations in a country, as well as basic information on the availability of satellite and cable TV services.
Budget
This entry includes revenues, expenditures, and capital expenditures. These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.
C
Capital
This entry gives the name of the seat of government, its geographic coordinates, the time difference relative to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) and the time observed in Washington, DC, and, if applicable, information on daylight saving time (DST). Where appropriate, a special note has been added to highlight those countries that have multiple time zones.
Central bank discount rate
This entry provides the annualized interest rate a country's central bank charges commercial, depository banks for loans to meet temporary shortages of funds.
Climate
This entry includes a brief description of typical weather regimes throughout the year.
Coastline
This entry gives the total length of the boundary between the land area (including islands) and the sea.
Commercial bank prime lending rate
This entry provides a simple average of annualized interest rates commercial banks charge on new loans, denominated in the national currency, to their most credit-worthy customers.
Communications
This category deals with the means of exchanging information and includes the telephone, radio, television, and Internet host entries.
Communications - note
This entry includes miscellaneous communications information of significance not included elsewhere.
Constitution
This entry includes the dates of adoption, revisions, and major amendments.
Coordinated Universal Time (UTC)
UTC is the international atomic time scale that serves as the basis of timekeeping for most of the world. The hours, minutes, and seconds expressed by UTC represent the time of day at the Prime Meridian (0 deg. longitude) located near Greenwich, England as reckoned from midnight. UTC is calculated by the Bureau International des Poids et Measures (BIPM) in Sevres, France. The BIPM averages data collected from more than 200 atomic time and frequency standards located at about 50 laboratories worldwide. UTC is the basis for all civil time with the Earth divided into time zones expressed as positive or negative differences from UTC. UTC is also referred to as "Zulu time." See the Standard Time Zones of the World map included with the Reference Maps.
Country data codes
See Data codes.
Country map
Most versions of the Factbook provide a country map in color. The maps were produced from the best information available at the time of preparation. Names and/or boundaries may have changed subsequently.
Country name
This entry includes all forms of the country's name approved by the
US Board on Geographic Names (Italy is used as an example):
conventional long form (Italian Republic), conventional short form
(Italy), local long form (Repubblica Italiana), local short form
(Italia), former (Kingdom of Italy), as well as the abbreviation.
Also see the Terminology note.
Crude oil
See entry for oil.
Current account balance
This entry records a country's net trade in goods and services, plus net earnings from rents, interest, profits, and dividends, and net transfer payments (such as pension funds and worker remittances) to and from the rest of the world during the period specified. These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.
D
Data codes
This information is presented in This information is presented in <a href = "../appendix/appendix-d.html"Appendix D: Cross-Reference List of Country Data Codes and and <a href = "../appendix/appendix-e.html" Appendix E: Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data Codes.
Date of information
In general, information available as of January in a given year is used in the preparation of the printed edition.
Daylight Saving Time (DST)
This entry is included for those entities that have adopted a policy of adjusting the official local time forward, usually one hour, from Standard Time during summer months. Such policies are most common in mid-latitude regions.
Death rate
This entry gives the average annual number of deaths during a year per 1,000 population at midyear; also known as crude death rate. The death rate, while only a rough indicator of the mortality situation in a country, accurately indicates the current mortality impact on population growth. This indicator is significantly affected by age distribution, and most countries will eventually show a rise in the overall death rate, in spite of continued decline in mortality at all ages, as declining fertility results in an aging population.
Debt - external
This entry gives the total public and private debt owed to nonresidents repayable in internationally accepted currencies, goods, or services. These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.
Dependency status
This entry describes the formal relationship between a particular nonindependent entity and an independent state.
Dependent areas
This entry contains an alphabetical listing of all nonindependent entities associated in some way with a particular independent state.
Diplomatic representation
The US Government has diplomatic relations with 189 independent states, including 187 of the 192 UN members (excluded UN members are Bhutan, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and the US itself). In addition, the US has diplomatic relations with 2 independent states that are not in the UN, the Holy See and Kosovo, as well as with the EU.
Diplomatic representation from the US
This entry includes the chief of mission, embassy address, mailing address, telephone number, FAX number, branch office locations, consulate general locations, and consulate locations.
Diplomatic representation in the US
This entry includes the chief of mission, chancery, telephone, FAX, consulate general locations, and consulate locations.
Disputes - international
This entry includes a wide variety of situations that range from traditional bilateral boundary disputes to unilateral claims of one sort or another. Information regarding disputes over international terrestrial and maritime boundaries has been reviewed by the US Department of State. References to other situations involving borders or frontiers may also be included, such as resource disputes, geopolitical questions, or irredentist issues; however,