What Countries Make up the Pacific Rim?

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Dozens of countries are located around the Pacific Rim, including the United States, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea, Philippines, Malaysia, Japan, Cambodia, Brunei, China, Indonesia, North Korea, Papua New Guinea, Singapore and Vietnam. These countries lie on four of the seven continents: North America, South America, Asia and Australia.

The Pacific Rim is defined as the land bordering and in the Pacific Ocean. It is ringed on one side by Asia and Southeast Asia, Oceania and dozens of Islands, and on the other side by North America, Central America and South America.

The Pacific Rim is known for its economic strength, which is due to the proximity of the Pacific Ocean as a prime shipping route. Trade across the Pacific Ocean has grown along with the development of the United States. Up until 1990, the Atlantic Ocean was the main thoroughfare for products to be moved between countries. The year 1990 marked the point in which the value of goods shipped across the Pacific Ocean eclipsed the value of goods shipped across the Atlantic Ocean. The leading manufacturers and economic powerhouses on the Pacific Rim include Hong Kong, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore.