Реферат: Finland
Headquarters of Nokia, Finland's largest company.
Overview
Finland has a highly industrialised, free-market economy with
a per capita output equal to that of other western economies such as Sweden,
the UK, France and Germany. The largest sector of the economy is services at
65.7 percent, followed by manufacturing and refining at 31.4 percent. Primary
production is low at 2.9 percent, reflecting the fact that Finland is a
resource-poor country. With respect to foreign trade, the key economic sector
is manufacturing. The largest industries are electronics (21.6 percent),
machinery, vehicles and other engineered metal products (21.1 percent), forest
industry (13.1 percent), and chemicals (10.9 percent). International trade is
important, with exports equalling almost one-third of GDP. Except for timber
and several minerals, Finland depends on imports of raw materials, energy and
some components for manufactured goods.
Because of the northern climate, agricultural development is
limited to maintaining self-sufficiency. Forestry, an important export earner,
provides a secondary occupation for the rural population.
Finland was one of the eleven countries joining the euro
monetary system (EMU) on January 1, 1999. The national currency markka (FIM),
in use since 1860, was withdrawn and replaced by the euro (EUR) at the
beginning of 2002 (see Finnish euro coins).
The World Economic Forum has declared Finland to be the most
competitive country in the world for three consecutive years (2003–2005) and
four times since 2002. In recent years there has been national focus on
innovation and research and development, with special emphasis on information
technology. Nokia, the telecommunications company, is generally
regarded as the single most significant cause of Finland's success.
Economic history
Finnish trade relationships and politics were by large
determined by avoidance of provoking first the feudally ruled Imperial Russia
and then the totalitarian Soviet Union. However, the peaceful relationship with
both the Soviet Union and Western powers was turned into an economic advantage.
The Soviet Union conducted bilateral trade with Finland, but Western countries
remained Finland's main trading partners. After the Second World War, the
growth rate of the GDP was high compared to other Europe, and Finland was often
called "Japan of the North". In the beginning of the 1970s, Finland's
GDP per capita reached the level of Japan and the UK.
In 1991, Finland fell into a severe depression caused by
economic overheating, depressed foreign markets and the dismantling of the
barter system between Finland and the former Soviet Union. More than twenty
percent of Finnish trade was with the Soviet Union before 1991, and in the
following two years the trade practically ceased. The growth in the 1980s was
based on debt, and when the defaults began rolling in, an avalanche effect
increased the unemployment from a virtual full employment to one fifth of the
workforce. However, civil order remained and the state alleviated the problem
of funding the welfare state by taking massive debts. 1991 and again in 1992,
Finland devalued the markka to promote export competitiveness. This helped
stabilise the economy; the depression bottomed out in 1993, with continued
growth through 1995. Since then the growth rate has been one of the highest of
OECD countries, and national debt has been reduced to 41.1 percent of GDP
(fulfilling the EU's Stability and Growth Pact requirement). Unfortunately, the
unemployment has been persistent, and is currently at about 7 percent.
Notable corporations
The 339 metres long M/S Freedom of the Seas and her sister ship
M/S Liberty of the Seas, built at Aker Yards in Perno, Turku, are the
largest cruise ships and passenger vessels in the world.
Notable Finnish companies include Nokia, the market leader in
mobile telephony; Stora Enso, the largest paper manufacturer in the world;
Neste Oil, an oil refining and marketing company; UPM-Kymmene, the third
largest paper manufacturer in the world; Aker Finnyards, the manufacturer of
the world's largest cruise ships (such as Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the
Seas); KONE, a manufacturer of elevators and escalators; Wärtsilä,
a producer of power plants and ship engines; and Finnair, the country's
international airline.
Public transport
Helsinki-Vantaa Airport, the main airport of the Helsinki Metropolitan
Region and the whole of Finland.
Finland's transport network is developed. As of 2005, the
country's network of main roads has a total length of 13,258 km, and is
mainly centred on the capital city of Helsinki. The total length of all public
roads is 78,186 km, of which 50,616 km are paved. The motorway
network is still to a great extent under development, and currently totals 653 km. There are 5,865 km of railways in the country. Helsinki has an urban rail network,
and light rail systems are currently being planned in Turku and Tampere.
Finland also has a considerable number of airports and large ports.
The national railway company is VR (Valtion Rautatiet, or
State Railways). It offers InterCity and express trains throughout the country
and the faster Pendolino trains connecting the major cities. There are large discounts
(usually fifty percent) available for children (7–16 yr), students, senior
citizens and conscripts. There are international trains to St. Petersburg
(Finnish and Russian day-time trains) and Moscow (Russian over-night train),
Russia. Connections to Sweden are by bus due to rail gauge differences. It's
possible to take the
·
Silja
Line and Viking Line ferries from Helsinki and Turku to Mariehamn and Lagans,
Stockholm (Sweden) and Tallinn (Estonia),
·
Tallink
ferries from Helsinki to Tallinn (Estonia) and Rostock (Germany)
·
Eckerö
Line ferries from Helsinki to Tallinn (Estonia) and from Eckerö to
Grisslehamn (Sweden).
There are about 25 airports in Finland with scheduled
passenger services. Finnair, Blue1 and Finncomm Airlines provide air services
both domestically and internationally. Helsinki-Vantaa Airport is Finland's
global gateway with scheduled non-stop flights to such places as Bangkok,
Beijing, Delhi, Guangzhou, Mumbai, Nagoya, New York, Osaka, Shanghai, Hong Kong
and Tokyo. Helsinki has an optimal location for great circle airline traffic
routes between Western Europe and the Far East. Hence, many foreign tourists
visit Helsinki on a stop-over while flying from Asia to Europe or vice versa.
Culture
Chimneyless sauna building in Enonkoski. Strong Finnish sauna culture is
one of the remains of the aboriginal Finnish culture.
Like the people, Finnish culture is indigenous and most
prominently represented by the Finnish language. Throughout the area's
prehistory and history, cultural contacts and influences have concurrently, or
at varying times, come from all directions. As a result of 600 years of Swedish
rule, Swedish cultural influences are still notable. Today, cultural influences
from North America are prominent. Into the twenty-first century, many Finns
have contacted cultures from distantly abroad, such as with those in Asia and
Africa. Beyond tourism, Finnish youth in particular have been increasing their
contact with peoples from outside Finland by travelling abroad to both work and
study.
There are still differences between regions, especially minor
differences in accents and vocabulary. Minorities, such as the Sami, Finland
Swedes, Romani, and Tatar, maintain their own cultural characteristics. Many
Finns are emotionally connected to the countryside and nature, as urbanisation
is a relatively recent phenomenon.
Finland comfortably won the first Eurovision Dance Contest in
September 2007.
Literature
Though Finnish written language could be said to exist since
Mikael Agricola translated the New Testament into Finnish in the sixteenth
century as a result of the Protestant Reformation, few notable works of
literature were written until the nineteenth century, which saw the beginning
of a Finnish national Romantic Movement. This prompted Elias Lönnrot to
collect Finnish and Karelian folk poetry and arrange and publish them as Kalevala,
the Finnish national epic. The era saw a rise of poets and novelists who wrote
in Finnish, notably Aleksis Kivi and Eino Leino.
After Finland became independent there was a rise of
modernist writers, most famously Mika Waltari. Frans Eemil Sillanpää
was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1939 – so far the only one for a
Finnish author. The second World War prompted a return to more national
interests in comparison to a more international line of thought, characterized
by Väinö Linna. Literature in modern Finland is in a healthy state,
with detective stories enjoying a particular boom of popularity. Ilkka Remes, a
Finnish author of thrillers, is very popular.
Visual arts
The architect couple Aino and Alvar Aalto.
Finns have made major contributions to handicrafts and
industrial design. Finland's best-known sculptor of the twentieth century was Wäinö
Aaltonen, remembered for his monumental busts and sculptures. Finnish
architecture is famous around the world. Among the top of the twentieth century
Finnish architects to win international recognition are Eliel Saarinen
(designer of the widely recognised Helsinki Central railway station and many
other public works) and his son Eero Saarinen. Alvar Aalto, who helped bring
the functionalist architecture to Finland, is also famous for his work in
furniture and glassware.
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