 National name: Nippon
Emperor: Akihito (1989)
Prime Minister: Junichiro Koizumi (2001)
Area: 145,882 sq mi (377,835 sq km)
Monetary unit: Yen
Language: Japanese
Population (2005 est.): 127,417,244
- growth rate: 0.1%;
- birth rate: 9.5/1000;
- infant mortality rate: 3.3/1000;
- life expectancy: 81.2;
- density per sq mi: 873
Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Tokyo, 31,139,900 (metro. area), 8,240,100 (city proper)
Other large cities:
- Yokohama, 3,494,900 (part of Tokyo metro. area);
- Osaka, 2,597,000;
- Nagoya, 2,189,700;
- Sapporo, 1,848,000;
- Kobe, 1,529,900 (part of Osaka metro. area);
- Kyoto, 1,470,600 (part of Osaka metro. area);
- Fukuoka, 1,368,900;
- Kawasaki, 1,276,200 (part of Tokyo metro. area);
- Hiroshima, 1,132,700
Ethnicity/race:
- Japanese 99%,
- other 1% (mostly Korean)
Religions:
- Shintoist and Buddhist 84%,
- other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
Literacy rate: 99% (1995 est.)
Economic summary:
- GDP/PPP (2004 est.): $3.745 trillion; per capita $29,400.
- Real growth rate: 2.9%.
- Inflation: -0.1%.
- Unemployment: 4.7%.
- Arable land: 12%.
- Agriculture: rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish.
- Labor force: 66.97 million; services 70%, industry 25%, agriculture 5% (2002 est.).
- Industries: among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals; textiles, processed foods.
- Natural resources: negligible mineral resources, fish.
- Exports: $447.1 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): motor vehicles, semiconductors, office machinery, chemicals.
- Imports: $346.6 billion (f.o.b., 2003 est.): machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials (2001).
- Major trading partners: U.S., China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia.
Communications:
- Telephones: main lines in use: 60.381 million (1997); mobile cellular: 63.88 million (2000).
- Radio broadcast stations: AM 215 plus 370 repeaters, FM 89 plus 485 repeaters, shortwave 21 (2001).
- Radios: 120.5 million (1997).
- Television broadcast stations: 211 plus 7,341 repeaters; note: in addition, U.S. Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services (1999).
- Televisions: 86.5 million (1997).
- Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 73 (2000).
- Internet users: 56 million (2002).
Transportation:
 - Railways: total: 23,168 km (2002).
- Highways: total: 1,161,894 km; paved: 534,471 km (including 6,455 km of expressways); unpaved: 627,423 km (1999).
- Waterways: about 1,770 km; seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas.
- Ports and harbors: Akita, Amagasaki, Chiba, Hachinohe, Hakodate, Higashi-Harima, Himeji, Hiroshima, Kawasaki, Kinuura, Kobe, Kushiro, Mizushima, Moji, Nagoya, Osaka, Sakai, Sakaide, Shimizu, Tokyo, Tomakomai.
- Airports: 172 (2002).
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