Land area:152,411 sq mi (394,744 sq km);
Total area:145,882 sq mi (377,835 sq km)
Population (2008 est.) 127,078,679 (growth rate: -0.1%); birth rate: 7.6/1000; infant mortality rate: 2.8/1000; life expectancy: 82.1; density per sq km: 339
Capital (2003 est.):Tokyo, 35,327,000 (metro. area), 8,483,050 (city proper)
Other large cities:Yokohama, 3,494,900 (part of Tokyo metro. area); Osaka, 11,286,000 (metro. area), 2,597,000 (city proper); Nagoya, 2,189,700; Sapporo, 1,848,000; Kobe, 1,529,900 (part of Osaka metro. area); Kyoto, 1,470,600 (part of Osaka metro. area); Fukuoka, 1,368,900; Kawasaki, 1,276,200 (part of Tokyo metro. area); Hiroshima, 1,132,700
Monetary unit:Yen
National name: Nippon

Current government officials
Languages:Japanese
Ethnicity/race: Japanese 99%; Korean, Chinese, Brazillian, Filipino, other 1% (2004)
Religions: Shintoist and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
Literacy rate: 99% (2002 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2007 est.): $4.29 trillion; per capita $33,600. Real growth rate: 2.1%. Inflation: 0%. Unemployment: 4%. Arable land: 12%. Agriculture: rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish. Labor force: 66.07 million; agriculture 4.6%, industry 27.8%, services 67.7% (2004). Industries: among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, processed foods. Natural resources: negligible mineral resources, fish. Exports: $665.7 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): transport equipment, motor vehicles, semiconductors, electrical machinery, chemicals. Imports: $571.1billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials. Major trading partners: U.S., China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Australia, Saudi Arabia, UAE (2006).