Economy - overview: The government, the primary player in the economy, has undertaken limited reforms in recent years to stem excess liquidity, increase enterprise efficiency, and alleviate serious shortages of food, consumer goods, and services, but prioritizing of political control makes extensive reforms unlikely. Living standards for the average Cuban, without access to dollars, remain at a depressed level compared with 1990. The liberalized farmers' markets introduced in 1994, sell above-quota production at market prices, expand legal consumption alternatives, and reduce black market prices. Income taxes and increased regulations introduced since 1996 have sharply reduced the number of legally self-employed from a high of 208,000 in January 1996. Havana announced in 1995 that GDP declined by 35% during 1989-93 as a result of lost Soviet aid and domestic inefficiencies. The slide in GDP came to a halt in 1994 when Cuba reported growth in GDP of 0.7%. Cuba reported that GDP increased by 2.5% in 1995 and 7.8% in 1996, before slowing down in 1997 and 1998 to 2.5% and 1.2% respectively. Growth recovered with a 6.2% increase in GDP in 1999 and a 5.6% increase in 2000. Much of Cuba's recovery can be attributed to tourism revenues and foreign investment. Growth in 2001 should continue at the same level as the government balances the need for economic loosening against its concern for firm political control.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $19.2 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 5.6% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 7%
industry: 37%
services: 56% (1998 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.3% (1999 est.)

Labor force: 4.3 million (2000 est.)
note: state sector 75%, non-state sector 25% (1998)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 25%, industry 24%, services 51% (1998)

Unemployment rate: 5.5% (2000 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $13.5 billion
expenditures: $14.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Industries: sugar, petroleum, tobacco, chemicals, construction, services, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery

Industrial production growth rate: 5% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: 14.358 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 94.2%
hydro: 0.7%
nuclear: 0%
other: 5.1% (1999)

Electricity - consumption: 13.353 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products: sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock

Exports: $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Exports - commodities: sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee

Exports - partners: Russia 23%, Netherlands 23%, Canada 13% (1999)

Imports: $3.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.)

Imports - commodities: petroleum, food, machinery, chemicals, semifinished goods, transport equipment, consumer goods

Imports - partners: Spain 18%, Venezuela 13%, Canada 8% (1999)

Debt - external: $11.1 billion (convertible currency, 1999); another $15 billion -$20 billion owed to Russia (2000)

Economic aid - recipient: $68.2 million (1997 est.)

Currency: Cuban peso (CUP)

Currency code: CUP

Exchange rates: Cuban pesos per US dollar - 1.0000 (nonconvertible, official rate, for international transactions, pegged to the US dollar); convertible peso sold for domestic use at a rate of 1.00 US dollar per 22 pesos by the Government of Cuba (January 2001)

Fiscal year: calendar year

NOTE: The information regarding Cuba on this page is re-published from the 2001 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Cuba Economy 2001 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Cuba Economy 2001 should be addressed to the CIA.