United States

Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65), in which a northern Union of states defeated a secessionist Confederacy of 11 southern slave states, and the Great Depression of the 1930s, an economic downturn during which about a quarter of the labor force lost its jobs. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. Over a span of more than five decades, the economy has achieved steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.

Economic characteristics

 * Currency: United States dollar (ISO code: USD)
 * Central bank discount rate: 0.5% (31 December 2009)
 * Commercial banks lending rate: 5.09% (31 December 2008)
 * Stock of money (M1): $1.436 trillion (31 December 2008)
 * Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $10.99 trillion (31 December 2008)
 * According to an estimate, for every 1.65 employed persons in the private sector, 1 person receives welfare assistance. Also, for every 1.25 employed persons in the private sector, 1 person receives welfare assistance or works for the government.

Notable events:

 * Banking crisis: August 1814, 1818-1819, January 1825, 1836-1838, March 1841, August 1857, December 1861, April 1864, September 1873, May 1884, 1890, March 1907, July 1914, 1929-1933, 1984-1991
 * Years in inflation: 1.4% (share of years 1790-2009 with annual inflation above 20 per cent per annum)
 * Public default: 1790 (external), 1790, 1841-1842, 1873-1884, 1933 (domestic)