_#_Terrain: mostly mountains of volcanic origin; narrow coastal plains
_#_Natural resources: manganese, hardwood forests, fish
_#_Land use: arable land 1%; permanent crops 5%; meadows and pastures 2%; forest and woodland 1%; other 91%
_#_Environment: subject to tropical cyclones or typhoons (January to April); volcanism causes minor earthquakes
_#_Note: located 5,750 km southwest of Honolulu in the South Pacific Ocean about three-quarters of the way between Hawaii and Australia
_*People #_Population: 170,319 (July 1991), growth rate 3.1% (1991)
_#_Birth rate: 36 births/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Death rate: 5 deaths/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Net migration rate: 0 migrants/1,000 population (1991)
_#_Infant mortality rate: 36 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)