Economy
GDP: $1.698 trillion (2005 est.)
GDP growth rate: 0.1% (2005 est.)
GDP per capita: $29,200 (2005 est.)
Inflation rate: 2% (2005 est.)
Currency:
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
People
Population: 58,133,509 (July 2006 est.)
Growth rate: 0.04% (2006 est.)
Religions: approximately 90% Roman Catholic (about one-third regularly attend services); mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community
Languages: Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)
Government
Capital:
name: Rome
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Independence: 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)
