LOW TAX COUNTRIES
Andorra
Anguilla
Antigua & Barbuda
Aruba
Australia
Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Bermuda
British Virgin Islands
Cayman Islands
Cook Islands
Costa Rica
Cyprus
Dominica
Dominican Republic
Gibraltar
Hong Kong
Isle of Man
Jersey & Guernsey
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Malta
Mauritius
Panama
Singapore
St.kitts & Nevis
Switzerland
Turks & Caicos
Vanuatu
Index of Articles
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AUSTRALIA
About Australia
Australia has a prosperous, Western-style mixed economy, with a per capita GDP slightly higher than the UK, Germany and France in terms of purchasing power parity. The country was ranked third in the United Nations' 2005 Human Development Index and sixth in The Economist worldwide quality-of-life index 2005.
In recent years, the Australian economy has been resilient in the face of global economic downturn. Rising output in the domestic economy has been offsetting the global slump, and business and consumer confidence remains robust. Current areas of concern to some economists include Australia's high current account deficit and also the high levels of net foreign debt owed by the private sector.
In the 1980s, the Hawke Government started the process of economic reform by floating the Australian dollar in 1983, and deregulating the financial system. Since 1996, the Howard government has continued the process of micro-economic reform, including partial deregulation of the labour market and the privatisation of state-owned businesses, most notably in the telecommunications industry.
Substantial reform of the indirect tax system was implemented in July 2000 with the introduction of a 10% Goods and Services Tax, which has slightly reduced the heavy reliance on personal and company income tax that still characterises Australia's tax system.
As of July 2006, unemployment was 4.8% with 10,223,300 persons employed. The service sector of the economy, including tourism, education, and financial services, comprises 69% of GDP.
Agriculture and natural resources comprise 3% and 5% of GDP but contribute
substantially to Australia's export performance. Australia's largest export
markets include Japan, China, the United States, South Korea and New Zealand.
| Australia |
|
| Capital |
Canberra
35°15′S 149°28′E |
| Largest City |
Sydney |
| Official languages |
English |
| Area |
7,741,220 km² (6th)
2,988,888 sq mi |
| Population
|
20,555,3002 (53rd) |
| GDP (PPP)
|
$674.9 billion (17th) |
| per capita
|
$32,220 (14th) |
| Currency |
Australian dollar (AUD) |
| Time zone |
Various (UTC+8 to +10) |
| Dialling code |
++ 61 |
FACTS ABOUT AUSTRALIA
Australia consists of six states, two major mainland territories, and other minor territories. The states are New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The two major mainland territories are the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. In most respects, the territories function similarly to the states, but the Commonwealth Parliament can override any legislation of their parliaments. By contrast, federal legislation overrides state legislation only with respect to certain areas as set out in Section 51 of the Constitution; all residual legislative powers are retained by the state parliaments, including powers over hospitals, education, police, the judiciary, roads, public transport and local government.
Each state and territory has its own legislature (unicameral in the case of the Northern Territory, the ACT and Queensland, and bicameral in the remaining states). The lower house is known as the Legislative Assembly (House of Assembly in South Australia and Tasmania) and the upper house is known as the Legislative Council. The heads of the governments in each state and territory are called premiers and chief ministers, respectively. The Queen is represented in each state by a governor; an administrator in the Northern Territory, and the Governor-General in the ACT, have analogous roles.
Australia also has several minor territories; the federal government administers a separate area within New South Wales, the Jervis Bay Territory, as a naval base and sea port for the national capital. In addition Australia has the following, inhabited, external territories: Norfolk Island, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, and several largely uninhabited external territories: Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands and the Australian Antarctic Territory.
~ Books About Australia ~
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