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France Fact File
France Fact File: General Information
Population: 63,713,926 (July est.)
Size of Country: 547,030 sq km (slightly smaller than the size of Texas)
Capital City: Paris
Time Zone: GMT+1
Location: Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the U.K.; bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain
Climate: Generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral
Currency: Euro
Language: French
System of Government: Republic, led by President Nicolas Sarkozy
Telephone Country Code: 33
Electricity: 220 volts
National Holidays: Fete de la Federation, July 14 (note: although often incorrectly referred to as Bastille Day, the celebration actually commemorates the holiday held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille (on July 14, 1789) and the establishment of a constitutional monarchy; other names for the holiday are Fete Nationale (National Holiday) and quatorze juillet (July 14)
Religion: Roman Catholic 83-88%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 5-10%, unaffiliated 4%
Life Expectancy at Birth: 81 years
Economy: France's leaders remain committed to a capitalism in which they maintain social equity by means of laws, tax policies, and social spending that reduce income disparity and the impact of free markets on public health and welfare
Exports: $490 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports: $529.1 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Gross Domestic Product (Purchasing Power Parity): $1.891 trillion (2006 est.)
GDP per Capita: $31,100 (2006 est.)
Inflation Rate: 1.5% (2006 est.)
Source: CIA The World Factbook