Geography: North America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific Ocean. North America covers an area of about 24,709,000 square kilometers (9,540,000 square miles). As of July 2008, its population was estimated at nearly 529 million people. It is the third-largest continent in area, following Asia and Africa, and the fourth in population after Asia, Africa, and Europe.

Economy: North America's extensive agricultural lands (especially in Canada and the United States) are a result of the interrelationship of favorable climatic conditions, fertile soils, and technology, with high specialization, mechanization and commercialization. North America produces most of the world's corn, meat, cotton, soybeans, tobacco, and wheat, along with a variety of other food and industrial raw material crops. The manufacturing that provided a high standard of living for the people of Canada and the United States has significantly declined, and formerly abundant factory jobs are increasingly replaced by those in the service sector. Much of this manufacturing has moved to Mexico, which offers a large and inexpensive labor force.

Rich in: Mineral resources, mainly including coal, iron ore, bauxite, copper, natural gas, petroleum, mercury, nickel, uranium, lead and zinc. Forest resources are mainly distributed in the western mountains, rich in yellow cedar, red cedar, redwood and hemlock. The waters surrounding the Caribbean and Newfoundland are the world-famous fishing grounds.

Short of: Some strategic raw materials rely on importing almost entirely or in large part, such as tin, manganese, cobalt, aluminum, diamond, tantalum, niobium and natural rubber.