Economy—overview: Economic activity is limited to commercial fishing. The proximity to nearby oil- and gas-producing sedimentary basins suggests the potential for oil and gas deposits, but the region is largely unexplored, and there are no reliable estimates of potential reserves; commercial exploitation has yet to be developed.
Transportation
Ports and harbors: none
Airports: 4 (1998 est.)
Airports—with paved runways: total: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1998 est.)
Airports—with unpaved runways: total: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 2 (1998 est.)
Military
Military—note: Spratly Islands consist of more than 100 small islands or reefs, of which about 45 are claimed and occupied by China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam
Transnational Issues
Disputes—international: all of the Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam; parts of them are claimed by Malaysia and the Philippines; in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive fishing zone, which encompasses Louisa Reef in the southern Spratly Islands, but has not publicly claimed the island