Full country name: Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Kingdom of the Netherlands consists of the Netherlands, Netherlands Antilles and Aruba.
Area of the Netherlands: 41,526 sq km
Population: 16,105,000
Capital city: Amsterdam (population 735,500) Amsterdam is the nation's capital, but the seat of government is Den Haag, officially 's-Gravenhage or The Hague in English. Amsterdam, the Netherlands' capital, is one of the world's best hangout spots, a place where you can immerse yourself in culture, history, art, in the head of a beer or a self-rolled smoke. Amsterdam is situated 20 km from the sea, at the point where river Amstel joins the river IJ. The city has a population of about 750,000 and is the country's second largest port - after Rotterdam. Amsterdam is at the centre of a part of the Netherlands where there are many places of interest within easy reach.
People: Over 95% of the population are Dutch (Germanic and Gallo-Celtic stock), most of the rest are Indonesian, Surinamese or Moroccan
Religion: 60% Christian (Roman Catholic and Protestant), 3% Muslim
Government: Constitutional monarchy
Head of state: Queen Beatrix van Oranje Nassau
Prime Minister: Jan Peter Balkenende
GDP: US$350 billion
GDP per head: US$22,000
Annual growth: 3.7%
Inflation: 2%
Industries: service industries, banking, electronics, digital media, horticulture, agriculture, shipping Major trading partners: EU (Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, UK), USA
Member of European Union: yes
Euro zone participant: yes
Fixed Public Holidays: New Year's Day: 1 January Good Friday: 14 April Easter Sunday: 16 April Easter Monday: 17 April Queen's Birthday: 29 April Liberation Day: 5 May Ascension Day: 25 May Whit Sunday: 4 June Whit Monday: 5 June Christmas Day: 25 December Boxing Day: 26 December
