Luxembourg is one of the world's most industrialized countries and has a high standard of living. In 1999 the gross national product was $19.3 billion, or $44,740 per person. The national budget in 1997 included revenue of $7.5 billion and expenditure totaling $6.7 billion.
Banking, manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism are the most valuable economic sectors. Major manufactures include iron and steel, processed food, rubber and plastic products, metal and machinery products, paper and printing products, food products, and chemicals. In the early 1990s the annual production of pig iron totaled about 2.3 million metric tons and crude steel 3.1 million tons; dwindling iron resources and reduced demand for Luxembourg's steel exports have weakened the metal industry since the mid-1970s. the growth of Luxembourg's financial area has compensated for the steel industry's diminishing importance. Agriculture plays a minimal role in the nation's economy. Principal crops include barley, wheat, potatoes, oats, rye, and wine grapes. Substantial numbers of cattle, hogs, and poultry are also raised.
The stable, high-income economy features solid growth, low inflation, and low unemployment. The industrial sector, initially controlled by steel, has become increasingly diversified to include chemicals, rubber, and other products. Growth in the financial area has more than compensated for the decline in steel. Services, particularly banking, account for a substantial proportion of the economy. Agriculture is based on small family-owned farms. The economy depends on foreign and trans-border workers for 30% of its labor force. Luxembourg has a custom union with Belgium and the Netherlands, and, as a member of the EU, enjoys the advantages of the open European market. It joined with 10 other EU members to launch the euro on 1 January 1999.
The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg is a constitutional hereditary monarchy. The constitution, proclaimed in 1868 and later amended (particularly in 1919), provides for a democratic government, with legislative power unconditional in a unicameral chamber of deputies composed of 60 members elected at least every five years by universal vote of persons aged 18 and older. The sovereign (the grand duke or grand duchess) has the constitutional right to organize the government, which consists of a prime minister, who is head of the government, and at least three other ministers. A council of state, appointed for life by the sovereign, acts in an advisory capacity. The three major political parties are the Christian Social Party, the Socialist Worker Party, and the Democratic Party. The nation is separated into 12 cantons, each of which is subseparated into communes. A member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Luxembourg maintains a small volunteer army consisting of about 899 members.
In 1060 the nation came under the rule of Count Conrad, founder of the house of Luxemburg, which provided the Holy Roman Empire with four emperors in the 14th and early 15th centuries before being superseded in 1437 by the Habsburg dynasty. For the next four centuries, Spain and Austria alternately controlled the nation. At the close of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, Luxembourg was accomplished as a grand duchy by the Congress of Vienna and placed under the rule of William I, king of the Netherlands. In 1830 the Belgian provinces of the Netherlands revolted, and the grand duchy joined them. By the end of that year, Belgium had become an autonomous kingdom, and Luxembourg remained a part of the new nation until 1839, when its western portion was ceded to Belgium and the remainder was recognized as a sovereign and independent state. The Dutch king retained nominal authority as grand duke.
During World War II (1939-1945) Luxembourg was invaded by Germany on May 10, 1940. The reigning grand duchess, Charlotte, consequently accomplished a government-in-exile in London. In August 1942 the Germans proclaimed the grand duchy a part of the Third Reich.Allied military forces liberated Luxembourg in September 1944, and the nation was restored to civilian control. On June 26, 1945, it became an original member of the United Nations. An agreement establishing the Benelux Customs Union among Belgium,The Netherlands, and Luxembourg, took effect on January 1, 1948. Under the terms of a constitutional amendment adopted later in 1948, Luxembourg abrogated its orthodox neutrality.
Luxembourg (nation), officially Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, nation in western Europe, bounded by Belgium on the north and west, Germany on the east, and France on the south. With Belgium and The Netherlands, Luxembourg forms the Low, or Benelux, Countries. The nation has an area of 2,586 sq km (998 sq mi).
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Legal system: based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
vote: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
administrator branch: chief of state: Grand Duke HENRI (since 7 October 2000); Heir Apparent Prince GUILLAUME (son of the monarch, born 11 November 1981);
head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Claude JUNCKER (since 1 January 1995) and Vice Prime Minister Lydie POLFER (since 7 August 1999)
cabinet: Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister and vice prime minister appointed by the monarch, following popular election to the Chamber of Deputies; they are responsible to the Chamber of Deputies
note: government coalition - CSV and DP
Legislative branch: unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (60 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 13 June 1999 (next to be held by NA June 2004)
election results: % of vote by party - CSV 29.79%, DP 21.58%, LSAP 23.75%, ADR 10.36%, Green Party 9.09%, the Left 3.77%; seats by party - CSV 19, DP 15, LSAP 13, ADR 6, Green Party 5, the Left 2
note: the Council of State or Conseil d'Etat, which has 21 members who are appointed and dismissed by the Grand Duke based on proposals from the government, the Chamber of Deputies, or the Council of State, is an advisory body whose views are considered by the Chamber of Deputies
Judicial branch: judicial courts and tribunals (3 Justices of the Peace, 2 district courts, and 1 Supreme Court of Appeals); administrative courts and tribunals (State Prosecutor's Office, administrative courts and tribunals, and the Constitutional Court); judges for all courts are appointed for life by the monarch
International organization Member
ACCT, Australia Group, Benelux, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NATO, NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Luxembourg are mostly of German and French background but have a distinct national consciousness. The population of Luxembourg (2001 estimate) is 442,972, giving the nation an overall population density of 171 persons per sq km (444 per sq mi). The principal cities are centers of industrial production. The capital and largest city is Luxembourg City, also known as Luxembourg-Ville, with a population (1998) of 79,500. Other valuable cities are Esch-sur-Alzette (population, 1998 estimate, 24,600), Differdange (16,800), and Dudelange (16,400).
Action Committee for Democracy and Justice or ADR [Robert MEHLEN]; Christian Social People's Party or CSV (known also as Christian Social Party or PCS) [Erna HENNICOT-SCHOEPGES]; Democratic Party or DP [Lydie POLFER]; Green Party [Abbes JACOBY and Felix BRAS]; Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party or LSAP [Jean ASSELBORN]; Marxist and Reformed Communist Party DEI LENK (the Left) [no formal leadership]; other minor parties
3 districts; Diekirch, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg
