Economic:
United States Canada
GDP Real Growth 4.4% (2004 est.)
Rate
GDP Per Capita purchasing power parity -
$40,100 (2004 est.)
Unemployment 5.5% (2004 est.)
Rate
Inflation Rate 2.5% (2004 est.)
Population Below 12% (2004 est.)
Poverty Line
Demographic/Sociocultural:
United States
Ethnic Groups white 81.7%, black 12.9%,
Asian 4.2%, Amerindian
and Alaska native 1%,
native Hawaiian and other
Pacific islander 0.2%
(2003 est.)
note: a separate listing for
Hispanic is not included
because the US Census
Bureau considers Hispanic
to mean a person of Latin
American descent
(including persons of
Cuban, Mexican, or Puerto
Rican origin) living in the
US who may be of any
race or ethnic group
(white, black, Asian, etc.)
Languages English 82.1%, Spanish
10.7%, other Indo-
European 3.8%, Asian and
Pacific island 2.7%, other
0.7% (2000 census)
Population 295,734,134 (July 2005
est.)
Population Growth 0.92% (2005 est.)
Age Structure 0-14 years: 20.6% (male
31,095,725/female
29,703,997)
15-64 years: 67% (male
98,914,382/female
99,324,126)
65 years and over: 12.4%
(male 15,298,676/female
21,397,228) (2005 est.)
Literacy Rate definition: age 15 and over
can read and write
total population: 97%
male: 97%
female: 97% (1999 est.)
Japan
2.4% (2004 est.)
purchasing power parity -
$31,500 (2004 est.)
7% (2004)
1.9% (2004 est.)
15.9% (2003)
Canada
British Isles origin 28%,
French origin 23%, other
European 15%,
Amerindian 2%, other,
mostly Asian, African, Arab
6%, mixed background
26%
English (official) 59.3%,
French (official) 23.2%,
other 17.5%
32,805,041 (July 2005
est.)
0.9% (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 17.9% (male
3,016,032/female
2,869,244)
15-64 years: 68.9% (male
11,357,425/female
11,244,356)
65 years and over: 13.2%
(male 1,842,496/female
2,475,488) (2005 est.)
definition: age 15 and over
can read and write
total population: 97%
(1986 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%
2.9% (2004 est.)
purchasing power parity -
$29,400 (2004 est.)
4.7% (2004 est.)
-0.1% (2004 est.)
NA
Japan
Japanese 99%, others 1%
(Korean 511,262, Chinese
244,241, Brazilian
182,232, Filipino 89,851,
other 237,914)
note: up to 230,000
Brazilians of Japanese
origin migrated to Japan in
the 1990s to work in
industries; some have
returned to Brazil (2004)
Japanese
127,417,244 (July 2005
est.)
0.05% (2005 est.)
0-14 years: 14.3% (male
9,328,584/female
8,866,772)
15-64 years: 66.2% (male
42,462,533/female
41,942,835)
65 years and over: 19.5%
(male 10,435,284/female
14,381,236) (2005 est.)
definition: age 15 and over
can read and write
total population: 99%
male: 99%
female: 99% (2002)
Political/Legal:
United States
Government Type Constitution-based federal
republic; strong democratic
tradition
Legal System federal court system based
on English common law;
each state has its own
unique legal system, of
which all but one
(Louisiana's) is based on
English common law;
judicial review of legislative
acts; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction with
reservations
Budget revenues: $1.862 trillion
expenditures: $2.338
trillion, including capital
expenditures of NA (2004
est.)
Technological:
United States
Telephones-Main Lines 181,599,900 (2003)
Telephones- Cellular 158.722 million (2003)
Phones
Internet Users 159 million (2002)
Source: CIA World Factbook: http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blcindex.htm
Canada
a constitutional monarchy
that is also a parliamentary
democracy and a
federation
based on English common
law, except in Quebec,
where civil law system
based on French law
prevails; accepts
compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with
reservations
revenues: $151 billion
expenditures: $144 billion,
including capital
expenditures of NA (2004
est.)
Canada
19,950,900 (2003)
13,221,800 (2003)
16.11 million (2002)
Japan
constitutional monarchy
with a parliamentary
government
modeled after European
civil law system with
English-American
influence; judicial review of
legislative acts in the
Supreme Court; accepts
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
with reservations
revenues: $1.401 trillion
expenditures: $1.748
trillion, including capital
expenditures (public works
only) of about $71 billion
(2004 est.)
Japan
71.149 million (2002)
86,658,600 (2003)
57.2 million (2002)