France Geography

Country Name: French Republic

Capital City: Paris

Population: 60,876,136 (2006)

Population Growth: 0.35% (2006)

Currency: euro (EUR)

Languages: French

Area: 547,030 sq km

Inflation Rate: 1.5% (2006 est.)

Unemployment Rate: 8.7% (December 2006)

Domain extension: .fr

GEOGRAPHIC DETAILS OF FRANCE

Location:

metropolitan France: Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK; bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain

Geographic Co-ordinates:

46 00 N, 2 00 E

Area - total:

643,427 sq km; 547,030 sq km (metropolitan France)

Area - total:

643,427 sq km; 547,030 sq km (metropolitan France)

Area - land:

640,053 sq km; 545,630 sq km (metropolitan France)

Area - water:

3,374 sq km; 1,400 sq km (metropolitan France)

Land Boundaries:

metropolitan France - 2,889 km

Border Countries:

Andorra 56.6 km, Belgium 620 km, Germany 451 km, Italy 488 km, Luxembourg 73 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Spain 623 km, Switzerland 573 km

Terrain:

metropolitan France: mostly flat plains or gently rolling hills in north and west; remainder is mountainous, especially Pyrenees in south, Alps in east

Elevation - highest point:

Mont Blanc 4,807 m

Elevation - lowest point:

Rhone River delta -2 m

Natural Resources:

metropolitan France: coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorspar, gypsum, timber, fish

Arable Land:

33.46%

Permanent Crops:

2.03%

Other Land Use:

64.51%

Natural Hazards:

metropolitan France: flooding; avalanches; midwinter windstorms; drought; forest fires in south near the Mediterranean