Mexico

Facts & Figures

Map of Mexico
  • President: Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (2018)

    Land area: 750,561 sq mi (1,943,945 sq km); total area: 758,449 sq mi (1,964,375 sq km)

    Population (2022 est.): 129,150,971 (growth rate: 0.51%); birth rate: 13.55/1000; infant mortality rate: 11.86/1000; life expectancy: 72.32

    Capital and largest city (2022 est.): Mexico City, 22.085 million

    Other large cities: Guadalajara 5.340 million; Monterrey 5.037 million; Puebla 3.295 million; Tijuana 2.221 million; Toluca de Lerdo 2.576 million (2022)

    Monetary unit: Mexican peso

    Official name: Estados Unidos Mexicanos

    Current government officials

    Languages: Spanish only 93.8%, Spanish and indigenous languages 5.4%, indigenous only 0.6%, unspecified 0.2%; note - indigenous languages include various Mayan, Nahuatl, and other regional languages (2020 est.)

    Ethnicity/race: Mestizo (Amerindian-Spanish) 62%, predominantly Amerindian 21%, Amerindian 7%, other 10% (mostly European) (2012 est.)

    Religions: Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant/evangelical Christian 11.2%, other 0.002%, unaffiliated (includes atheism) 10.6% (2020 est.)

    National Holiday: Independence Day, September 16

    Literacy rate: 95.2% (2020 est.)

    Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2020 est.): $2,306,320,000,000; per capita $17,900. Real growth rate: -0.3%. Inflation: 3.6%. Unemployment: 3.49% plus underemployment of perhaps 25%. Arable land: 11.8%. Agriculture: corn, wheat, soybeans, rice, beans, cotton, coffee, fruit, tomatoes; beef, poultry, dairy products; wood products. Labor force: 50.914 million; agriculture 13.4%, industry 24.1%, services 61.9% (2020). Industries: food and beverages, tobacco, chemicals, iron and steel, petroleum, mining, textiles, clothing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, tourism. Natural resources: petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber. Exports: $434.93 billion (2020 est.): manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee, cotton. Major trading partners (exports): United States 75% (2019). Imports: $410.66 billion (2020 est.): metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles, aircraft, and aircraft parts. Major trading partners (imports): United States 54%, China 14% (2019).

    Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 24,500,456 (2020); mobile cellular: 122,898,392 (2020). Broadcast media: telecom reform in 2013 enabled the creation of new broadcast television channels after decades of a quasi-monopoly; Mexico has 885 TV stations and 1,841 radio stations and most are privately owned; the Televisa group once had a virtual monopoly in TV broadcasting, but new broadcasting groups and foreign satellite and cable operators are now available; in 2016, Mexico became the first country in Latin America to complete the transition from analog to digital transmissions, allowing for better image and audio quality and a wider selection of programming from networks (2022). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 16.233 million (2012). Internet users: 92,831,582 (2020).

    Transportation: Railways: total: 23,389 km (2017). Roadways: total: 704,884 km; paved: 175,526 km (2017) (includes 10,845 km of expressways); unpaved: 529,358 km (2017). Waterways: 2,900 km navigable rivers and coastal canals. major seaports: Altamira, Coatzacoalcos, Lazaro Cardenas, Manzanillo, Salina Cruz, Veracruz. Airports: 1,714 (2021).

    International disputes: abundant rainfall in recent years along much of the Mexico-US border region has ameliorated periodically strained water-sharing arrangements; the US has intensified security measures to monitor and control legal and illegal personnel, transport, and commodities across its border with Mexico; Mexico must deal with thousands of impoverished Guatemalans and other Central Americans who cross the porous border looking for work in Mexico and the United States; Belize and Mexico are working to solve minor border demarcation discrepancies arising from inaccuracies in the 1898 border treaty.

    Major sources and definitions

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