The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, a constitutional monarchy, is an independent sovereign state, tucked between Belgium, France and Germany (cf Luxembourg in Europe map). The country is 84 km (51.7 miles) long and 52 km (32 miles) wide, encompassing an area of 2586 square kilometres (999 square miles) with a population of 459 500 inhabitants (official estimate Jan 1, 2006).

1) GEOGRAPHY

A) The country is divided into two clearly defined REGIONS:

• The "Eisléck" or 'Oesling' in the north, which is part of the Ardennes, on the western rim of the Eifel, and covers one-third of the territory. It is a wooded country of great scenic beauty. Highest point: 555 metres (1823 feet).
• The 'Good country' in the centre and the south, covering the remainder of the territory, is mainly rolling farmland and woods. Average height: 270 metres (900 feet). Culminating point 426 metres (1400 feet). It is bordered in the east by the wine-producing valley of the Moselle, and in the extreme south west by a narrow strip of red earth which forms the Luxembourg iron-ore basin.

B) River Network:

The 4 most important rivers are:

The Moselle, the Sûre, the Our, and the Alzette

The other rivers are:

The Mess, the Mamer, the Eisch, the Attert and the Wark in the West;

The Wiltz, the Clerve and the Blees in the North;

The Ernz Blanche, the Ernz Noire, the Syr and the Gander in the East;

The Petrusse is a very small river that crosses Luxembourg city, and meets the Alzette.

C) Climate:

The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg enjoys a temperate climate without extremes. The sea (some 200 miles distant) has but a moderating influence on the weather. The air is clean, beneficial and health giving. Rainfalls: 31 inches.

Luxembourg Climate Averages

	Temperature Day (°C)	Temperature Night (°C)	Sunshine (hours)	Rain (days)
January	5	0	2	12
February	6	0	3	10
March	10	2	4	11
April	13	4	6	12
May	19	8	7	10
June	21	10	7	11
July	23	12	6	11
August	22	12	6	11
September	20	10	5	10
October	14	7	4	12
November	8	2	2	12
December	6	1	1	13

Luxembourg's Statistics Office (Statec) gives averages for the years from 1951 to 1990 (in Luxembourg-City) as follows:

Average 1951-1990	January	April	July	October	12 months
Temperature (Degrees C)
Average	0.8	8.3	17.5	9.5	9.0
Maximum	9.5	22.0	30.7	20.7	20.5
Minimum	-9.5	-2.2	6.9	-0.4	-1.3
Relative Humidity (%)	89.0	74.0	73.0	86.0	81.0
Hours of Sunshine	38.6	158.7	200.5	94.7	1430.0
Rainfall (mm)	69.0	50.6	62.9	63.8	782.2

See also: Weather predictions for Luxembourg

D) Communications:

• Air: International airport in Luxembourg: Findel Airport 3.5 miles north-east of the capital Luxembourg City (49°37' N, 6°13' E) at an altitude of 1234 feet. (see also: Luxembourg Airport homepage )

  National airline : Luxair with regular flights to: Agadir, Alicante, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Djerba, Faro, Frankfurt, Geneva, Hamburg, Heraklion, Korfou, Kos, London, Madrid, Malaga, Munich, Nice, Palma, Paris, Rhodes, Rome, Strasbourg, Saarbrücken, Tenerife, and Vienna.
  Other airlines link Luxembourg to: Boston, Brussels, Budapest, Hamburg, Lisbon, Milan, Zurich, to name but the major destinations.

• Rail: C.F.L. (=Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois [Luxembourg Railways]) with electrified railways and buses covering the whole country.

• Road: The road network is very good all over the country. All roads and motorways are toll-free.
  (www.cita.lu offers access to webcams on Luxembourg's motorways)

• River: The Moselle is canalised (since 1964) and links the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg to the large European Waterways.

2) HISTORY

• The Commission of the European Community, including the Statistical Office (EUROSTAT) and the Publications Office,
• The Court of Justice of the European Communities,
  
• The general Secretariat of the European Parliament,
  
• The European Investment Bank,
  
• The European Court of Auditors.
  
• The Official Publications Office
  
• The Nuclear Safety Administration,
• The Directorate-General of 'Credits and Investments',
  

3) ECONOMY

(see also: Economic Portrait)

It was the discovery of the iron ore around 1850 which marked the turning point for Luxembourg and meant its economic take-off. An important steel industry came into being in the south-western corner of the country, drawing tens of thousands of foreign workers into the ore mines and steel factories, and bringing prosperity to the whole country.

Steel exports constitute one quarter of the value of Luxembourg's export trade. Luxembourg is home to the ArcelorMittal group (previously known as ARBED), the largest private employer in the country and the number one steel company in the world with a turnover of 88.6 billion dollars in 2006. The company holds leadership positions in its main markets: automotive, construction, household appliances and packaging as well as general industry. ArcelorMittal has 320,000 employees in over 60 countries, and produces around 10% of world steel output.

Since the end of World War II, great efforts have been made to bring diversity into the former monolithic industry. Aluminium, glass, cement, tyres, magnetic tapes and computer manufacturers have established plants, dams have been built in Esch-sur-Sûre and Rosport; Vianden houses Europe's second largest pumping station producing peak hydro-electricity; the ASTRA satellites are controlled from Luxembourg.
Tax rebates, help in obtaining credits, and a host of other incentives are offered to companies intending to set up plant in the Grand Duchy. However, despite these continuing efforts, Luxembourg's industrial labour is dropping in numbers, marking a slide into the service sector. (see also: Luxembourg in Figures )

Luxembourg plays a major role as a prominent international financial centre. Numerous banks and important investment trusts have settled in the capital, as the fiscal legislation, which dates back to 1929, favours Banks and Holding Companies.
Luxembourg as an international centre numbers more than 14000 domiciled Holding Companies, some 8500 investment funds and 160 banks which represent the greatest banking concentration in the European Union.

The Luxembourg financial sector comprises 154 credit institutions from 26 different countries holding Balance Sheet assets of over EUR 843 billion as at 30 September 2006. The country represents the first International Private Banking centre in "Euro-Land" and the second largest Investment Funds industry after the USA and ranks eighth among the largest financial centres in the world.

In parallel with the growth of private banking, which year on year emerges as the core activity for Luxembourg's banks, the development of other sectors, such as Investment Fund Promotion and Services, as well as Life Insurance are reinforcing Luxembourg's claim to be Europe's premier centre for all forms of Personal Investment business.

Tourism contributes significantly to the National Accounts. (see also: Tourism Statistics and Tourism stats overview)

Its economic structure and its geographical position have necessarily led Luxembourg into a close co-operation with other countries, and particularly with Belgium since 1921, and with Belgium and the Netherlands since the second World War, with the creation of BENELUX, an economic Union which was the first step towards the present larger European Union.

See also: The Luxembourg Economy 2006 - A kaleidoscope [pdf] and industrie.lu

4) Currency

5) POPULATION & LANGUAGES