Kuwait Profile
Kuwait gained independence
from the UK in 1961 and is under the hereditary rule of the Al Sabah
family.
The economy has come to be almost entirely dominated by oil, allowing
the government to enjoy substantial powers of patronage, and drawing in
expatriate workers.
There is no tax on the income of individuals, and tax on nationals is
limited to zakat (charitable) deductions. There is no general
consumption tax, and few indirect taxes. Taxes on foreign businesses,
which formerly ranged up to 55% in the energy sector, were cut to a flat
rate of 15% in early 2008, and capital gains tax on stock-market
holdings was abolished.
The trade surplus was equivalent to 38% of GDP in 2007. Exports are
dominated by oil sales, which comprised over 95% of total exports in
2007, in turn financing a rising level of imports.
Kuwait's Online Media Usage and Statistics
Kuwait has a burgeoning online community with all
of the local papers providing digital platforms for the electronic
readership of their content.
Internet Usage Statistics:
900,000 Internet users as
of March/08, 34.7% of the population, according to ITU.
Latest
Population Estimate:
2,596,799 population for 2008, according to
Census Bureau.
Gross National Income:
GNI per capita is US$ 17,970 ('05)
according to
World Bank.
Kuwait
Country Area (Size):
17,818 sq km and the population density is 148 persons per sq km.
Internet Growth and
Population Statistics:
|
YEAR/font>
|
Users
|
Population
|
% Pop.
|
Usage
Source
|
|
2000
|
150,000
|
2,424,422
|
5.8 %
|
ITU
|
|
2003
|
567,000
|
2,530,012
|
22.4 %
|
ITU
|
|
2005
|
600,000
|
2,630,775
|
22.8 %
|
ITU
|
|
2008
|
900,000
|
2,596,799
|
34.7 %
|
ITU
|
|
