The capital city, Montevideo, surrounded by sea and parks, contains about half of the country's total population. Uruguay has a well-maintained developed road system reaching out from the Capital City and the Port of Montevideo. There are three international bridges across the River Uruguay uniting Argentina and Uruguay. Brazil is linked to Uruguay by four highways. The railroad system fans out from the capital and provides over 3,000 kilometers of tracks for transporting cargo.
Land prices are remarkably inexpensive, compared to Europe and North America.
Uruguay's Forestation Plan, which offers special benefits, has attracted a number of individuals and major organizations, including Royal Dutch Shell UPS Kymene and National Cellulose of Spain who have both forested about 25-30,000 hectares. Uruguay has long become the financial center of the region, following the regulations in l982 authorizing tax-free offshore banking. As a result, numerous major foreign banks are present in the country. A new President, Mr. Jorge Batlle of the Colorado Party, took office on 1 March 2000, for a five-year term. His coalition government generally follows the same open market policy and price stability of the previous government.