

Topic: Introduction
Background: Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions.Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions.

Topic: Geography
Area: total: 9,833,517 sq km

land: 9,147,593 sq km

water: 685,924 sq km
Climate: mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida, arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of the Mississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; low winter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally in January and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains
Natural resources: coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, rare earth elements, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc, petroleum, natural gas, timber, arable land;

Topic: People and Society
Population: 337,341,954 (2022 est.)
Ethnic groups: White 61.6%, Black or African American 12.4%, Asian 6%, Amerindian and Alaska native 1.1%, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 0.2%, other 8.4%, two or more races 10.2% (2020 est.)
Languages: English only 78.2%, Spanish 13.4%, Chinese 1.1%, other 7.3% (2017 est.)
Religions: Protestant 46.5%, Roman Catholic 20.8%, Jewish 1.9%, Church of Jesus Christ 1.6%, other Christian 0.9%, Muslim 0.9%, Jehovah's Witness 0.8%, Buddhist 0.7%, Hindu 0.7%, other 1.8%, unaffiliated 22.8%, don't know/refused 0.6% (2014 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.69% (2022 est.)

Topic: Government
Government type: constitutional federal republic
Capital: name: Washington, DC
Executive branch: chief of state: President Joseph R. BIDEN Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government

head of government: President Joseph R. BIDEN Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021)
Legislative branch: description: bicameral Congress consists of:
Senate (100 seats; 2 members directly elected in each of the 50 state constituencies by simple majority vote except in Georgia and Louisiana which require an absolute majority vote with a second round if needed; members serve 6-year terms with one-third of membership renewed every 2 years)
House of Representatives (435 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote except in Georgia which requires an absolute majority vote with a second round if needed; members serve 2-year terms)

Topic: Economy
Economic overview: high-income, diversified North American economy; NATO leader; largest importer and second-largest exporter; home to leading financial exchanges; high and growing public debt; rising socioeconomic inequalities; historically low interest rates; hit by COVID-19high-income, diversified North American economy; NATO leader; largest importer and second-largest exporter; home to leading financial exchanges; high and growing public debt; rising socioeconomic inequalities; historically low interest rates; hit by COVID-19
Real GDP (purchasing power parity): $19,846,720,000,000 (2020 est.)
Real GDP per capita: $60,200 (2020 est.)
Agricultural products: maize, milk, soybeans, wheat, sugar cane, sugar beet, poultry, potatoes, cotton, pork
Industries: highly diversified, world leading, high-technology innovator, second-largest industrial output in the world; petroleum, steel, motor vehicles, aerospace, telecommunications, chemicals, electronics, food processing, consumer goods, lumber, mining
Exports: $2,127,250,000,000 (2020 est.)
Exports - partners: Canada 17%, Mexico 16%, China 7%, Japan 5% (2019)
Exports - commodities: refined petroleum, crude petroleum, cars and vehicle parts, integrated circuits, aircraft (2019)
Imports: $2,808,960,000,000 (2020 est.)
Imports - partners: China 18%, Mexico 15%, Canada 13%, Japan 6%, Germany 5% (2019)
Imports - commodities: cars, crude petroleum, computers, broadcasting equipment, packaged medicines (2019)Page last updated: Monday, May 16, 2022