Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession of the east coast in the name of Great Britain (all of Australia was claimed as British territory in 1829 with the creation of the colony of Western Australia). Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990s, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980s. Long-term concerns include ageing of the population, pressure on infrastructure, and environmental issues such as frequent droughts.

Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean

slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states

generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north

mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast

bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, rare earth elements, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum

cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires

soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural freshwater resources

world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor" affects the city of Perth on the west coast and is one of the most consistent winds in the world

21,766,711 (July 2011 est.)

12.33 births/1,000 population (2011 est.)

6.88 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.)

6.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.)

Sydney 4.429 million; Melbourne 3.853 million; Brisbane 1.97 million; Perth 1.599 million; CANBERRA (capital) 384,000 (2009)

1.78 children born/woman (2011 est.)

fewer than 100 (2009 est.)

urban: 100% of population

rural: 100% of population

total: 100% of population (2008)

urban: 100% of population

rural: 100% of population

total: 100% of population (2008)

white 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%

Catholic 25.8%, Anglican 18.7%, Uniting Church 5.7%, Presbyterian and Reformed 3%, Eastern Orthodox 2.7%, other Christian 7.9%, Buddhist 2.1%, Muslim 1.7%, other 2.4%, unspecified 11.3%, none 18.7% (2006 Census)

English 78.5%, Chinese 2.5%, Italian 1.6%, Greek 1.3%, Arabic 1.2%, Vietnamese 1%, other 8.2%, unspecified 5.7% (2006 Census)

federal parliamentary democracy and a Commonwealth realm

6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia

Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Macquarie Island, Norfolk Island

1 January 1901 (from the federation of UK colonies)

Australia Day, 26 January (1788); ANZAC Day (commemorates the anniversary of the landing of troops of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps during World War I at Gallipoli, Turkey), 25 April (1915)

9 July 1900; effective 1 January 1901

common law system based on the English model

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal and compulsory

bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats; 12 members from each of the six states and 2 from each of the two mainland territories; one-half of state members are elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms while all territory members are elected every three years) and the House of Representatives (150 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve terms of up to three-years; no state can have fewer than 5 representatives)

High Court (the chief justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general acting on the advice of the government)

Australian Greens [Bob BROWN]; Australian Labor Party [Julia GILLARD]; Family First Party [Steve FIELDING]; Liberal Party [Tony ABBOTT]; The Nationals [Warren TRUSS]

ADB, ANZUS, APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, C, CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, FATF, G-20, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), Paris Club, PCA, PIF, SAARC (observer), Sparteca, SPC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth or Federation Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; on the fly half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars

Australia's abundant and diverse natural resources attract high levels of foreign investment and include extensive reserves of coal, iron ore, copper, gold, natural gas, uranium, and renewable energy sources. A series of major investments, such as the US$40 billion Gorgon Liquid Natural Gas project, will significantly expand the resources sector. Australia also has a large services sector and is a significant exporter of natural resources, energy, and food. Key tenets of Australia's trade policy include support for open trade and the successful culmination of the Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations, particularly for agriculture and services. The Australian economy grew for 17 consecutive years before the global financial crisis. Subsequently, the Rudd government introduced a fiscal stimulus package worth over US$50 billion to offset the effect of the slowing world economy, while the Reserve Bank of Australia cut interest rates to historic lows. These policies - and continued demand for commodities, especially from China - helped the Australian economy rebound after just one quarter of negative growth. The economy grew by 1.2% during 2009 - the best performance in the OECD - and by 3.3% in 2010. Unemployment, originally expected to reach 8-10%, peaked at 5.7% in late 2009 and fell to 5.1% in 2010. As a result of an improved economy, the budget deficit is expected to peak below 4.2% of GDP and the government could return to budget surpluses as early as 2015. Australia was one of the first advanced economies to raise interest rates, with seven rate hikes between October 2009 and November 2010. The GILLARD government is focused on raising Australia's economic productivity to ensure the sustainability of growth, and continues to manage the symbiotic, but sometimes tense, economic relationship with China. Australia is engaged in the Trans-Pacific Partnership talks and ongoing free trade agreement negotiations with China, Japan, and Korea.

$882.4 billion (2010 est.)

$858.8 billion (2009 est.)

$847.5 billion (2008 est.)

$1.236 trillion (2010 est.)

11.62 million (2010 est.)

27.4% of GDP (2010 est.)

22.4% of GDP (2010 est.)

22.1% of GDP (2009 est.)

4.25% (3 December 2008)

6.02% (31 December 2009 est.)

8.91% (31 December 2008 est.)

$347.1 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$290.8 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$1.134 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)

$976.6 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$1.731 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)

$1.407 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)

$1.258 trillion (31 December 2009)

$675.6 billion (31 December 2008)

$1.298 trillion (31 December 2007)

wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry

mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel

239.9 billion kWh (2007 est.)

222 billion kWh (2007 est.)

589,200 bbl/day (2009 est.)

946,300 bbl/day (2009 est.)

311,900 bbl/day (2008 est.)

716,700 bbl/day (2008 est.)

3.318 billion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)

42.33 billion cu m (2009 est.)

26.59 billion cu m (2009 est.)

22.3 billion cu m (2009 est.)

6.56 billion cu m (2009 est.)

3.115 trillion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)

$-35.23 billion (2010 est.)

$-41.33 billion (2009 est.)

$210.7 billion (2010 est.)

$154.8 billion (2009 est.)

coal, iron ore, gold, meat, wool, alumina, wheat, machinery and transport equipment

China 21.81%, Japan 19.19%, South Korea 7.88%, India 7.51%, US 4.95%, UK 4.37%, NZ 4.1% (2009)

$200.4 billion (2010 est.)

$160.4 billion (2009 est.)

machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products

China 17.94%, US 11.26%, Japan 8.36%, Thailand 5.81%, Singapore 5.54%, Germany 5.3% (2009)

$38.62 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$41.74 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$1.169 trillion (31 December 2010 est.)

$1.094 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)

$329.1 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$295.9 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

$245.9 billion (31 December 2010 est.)

$221.1 billion (31 December 2009 est.)

Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -

24.22 million (2009)

the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) runs multiple national and local radio networks and TV stations, as well as Australia Network, a TV service that broadcasts throughout the Asia-Pacific region and is the main public broadcaster; Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), a second large public broadcaster, operates radio and TV networks broadcasting in multiple languages; several large national commercial TV networks, a large number of local commercial TV stations, and hundreds of commercial radio stations are accessible; cable and satellite systems are available (2008)

13.361 million (2010)

15.81 million (2009)

gas 27,900 km; liquid petroleum gas 240 km; oil 3,257 km; oil/gas/water 1 km (2010)

2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2006)

Brisbane, Cairns, Dampier, Darwin, Fremantle, Gladstone, Geelong, Hay Point, Hobart, Jervis Bay, Melbourne, Newcastle, Port Adelaide, Port Dalrymple, Port Hedland, Port Kembla, Port Lincoln, Port Walcott, Sydney

Australian Defense Force (ADF): Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force, Special Operations Command (2006)

17 years of age for voluntary military service (with parental consent); no conscription; women allowed to serve in Army combat units in non-combat support roles (2010)

In 2007, Australia and Timor-Leste signed agreed to a 50-year development zone and revenue sharing arrangement and deferred a maritime boundary; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica; Australia's 2004 submission to Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) extends its continental margins over 3.37 million square kilometers, expanding its seabed roughly 30 percent beyond its claimed exclusive economic zone; a 1997 treaty between Indonesia and Australia settled some parts of their maritime boundary but some outstanding issues, especially around Timor Leste, remain; Indonesian groups challenge Australia's claim to Ashmore Reef; Australia has closed parts of the Ashmore and Cartier reserve to Indonesian traditional fishing

Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate; major consumer of cocaine and amphetamines