Information on Countries other than the US

Need to find statistics or other information about any nation?

Try these links:


From the U.S. Department of State: Background Notes









From the Library of Congress: Country Profiles






From the United Nations Development Programme:
Human Development Reports

This is probably the easiest place to go for international economic development statistics.








A coopperative effort of the World Bank and other organizations (based in Paris, France) is the OECD or Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.







The World Bank's own Data Finder

Data finder's interactive world maps allow users to compare 17 key development indicators, such as life expectancy and CO2 emissions, country-by-country and year-by-year.






From the International Finance Corporation: Doing Business

Doing Business annual reports investigate the regulations that enhance business activity and those that constrain it. Doing Business presents quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of property rights that can be compared across 181 economies - from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe - and over time.






Also from the private sector: Country Watch

Country Watch provides critical country-specific intelligence and data through its suite of products.







You can also access data on various countries with the following books:

The CIA World Factbook (in the Reference section at all three MPTC campuses, call number: G 122 .U56) or access it from their website









The Financial Times' World Desk Reference
A complete overview of the modern world: More than 600 maps, 5,000 charts and diagrams, and including over 25,000 facts and statistics on the world's 193 nations.




Nations of the World: A Political, Economic, and Business Handbook
(2010 Edition at FdL campus, 2006 at WB campus)
The political, economic and business climates of the world have dramatically changed since the last edition and this 2010 edition uniquely captures these changes-from current facts and figures to keen insight into economic, social and business conditions of over 200 nations. Call number: HF1010 .N37



The Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life
(Fond du Lac and West Bend campuses)
This 4-volume encyclopdia provides information on 500 cultures of the world, covering twenty different areas of daily life including clothing, food, language, and religion. Call number: GN333.W67 1998




You may also want to check out these blogposts on international business.

The World Bank's Data Finder

The World Bank's Data Finder allows you to compare 17 key statistics, such as life expectancy and CO2 emissions, country-by-country and year-by-year on an interactive world map. While a few countries have not provided data, and no statistics are available prior to 1960, it is nevertheless remarkable that so much data can be accessed so easily.




Statistics that you can look up in the Data Finder include:

• Energy use
• Population
• CO2 emissions
• Internet users
• GDP (in US$)
• GDP growth
• GNI (Gross National Income)
• Inflation
• Life expectancy at birth
• Fertility rate (births per woman)
• Military expenditure (as a % of GDP)
• Imports of goods and services, and
• Mortality rate (deaths under 5 per 1000)

Check out the World Bank's Data Finder now!



Google has recently teamed up with the World Bank to offer you the opportunity to make graphs of Data Finder statistics. See this post from Google's own blog to learn how it is done!

New Book of the Day

Doing Business Beyond America's Borders

Author Lawrence Tuller empowers you "to compete with giant transnational corporations." He "reveals the critical steps, tactics, and tools to help you expertly navigate the business landscape of 40 countries" (from the back cover).

Even if you aren't an entrepreneur, this book may come in handy when it's time to gather data for a project in your Economics class.

New Books

The Elephant and the Dragon:
The Rise of India and China and What it Means for All of Usby Robyn Meredith


This book is an "urgent exploration of the earth-tiliting emergence on India and China on the world stage." One Nobel prizewinner in economics calls it an "exciting and journalistic account of one of the great economic stories of our time."







Sacred Cells?
Why Christians should Support Stem Cell Research
by Ted Peters, Karen Lebacqz, and Gaymon Bennett


Is stem cell research ethically (as well as socially and politically) acceptable to people of faith? Yes, say the authors. They know the science involved and bring clarity and depth to the subject.










Billions of Entrepreneurs:
How India and China Are Reshaping Their Futures and Yours
by Trun Khanna


This fun-to-read book offers insights that others have missed. The author tells a fascinating story in an engaging style.

Web Site of the Day

The Emerging Markets Index created by MasterCard Worldwide uses eight evaluative dimensions to identify and rank the 65 most influential cities among emerging market countries. Its supplemental, in-depth reports provide unique insights to regional trends around the world, giving businesses an inside look at the markets as they evolve.

http://www.mastercard.com/us/company/en/insights/studies/2008/emi/index.html

Web Site of the Day

Doing Business
http://www.doingbusiness.org/
This site is produced by the World Bank Group and "provides objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 181 economies and selected cities at the subnational and regional level." The reports can be viewed online or downloaded free of charge.

Web Site of the Day

Michael Berry reviews several interesting resources on international business etiquette:
http://www.libsci.sc.edu/bob/class/clis748/Studentwebguides/Webguides2007/DBerry.html

New at the FdL Campus

MLA Style Manual and

Guide to Scholarly Publishing

3rd Edition

If you don't know MLA format you can learn it either from the links on our web page (click "Citation Guides,") or you can look at books like this one.

Call number PN 147 .G444 2008

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Doing Business 2009

This book compares the regulation and other relevant aspects of business in 181 economies.

Call number [Reference] HD 3612 .D65 2008