Europa World Year Book Use for: Basic overviews of historical, economic, social, and political background. Also gives media sources and links to their webpages.
IMF Country Reports (International Monetary Fund)
Use for:Reports on economic developments, with statistics Tip: Search by country name and select "IMF Country Reports" under Series.
OxResearch (Oxford Analytica) Use for: political and economic analysis from the transition of the Cold War to the present
Political Handbook of the World
Available online through CQ Political Reference Suite
Covers countries and intergovernmental organizations; including political background, economics, social movements, political parties, current issues.
Political Risk Yearbooks
PRS probability forecasts for political, social and economic trends for 100 countries.
See the Business Source Completedatabase for the full text of the country reports beginning with 2003.
Also, 8 volumes by region in Perkins Reference.