Economy - overview:
Historically, the Barbadian economy was dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities. However, in recent years the economy has diversified into light industry and tourism with about three-quarters of GDP and 80% of exports being attributed to services. Growth has rebounded since 2003, bolstered by increases in construction projects and tourism revenues, reflecting its success in the higher-end segment, but the sector faced declining revenues in 2009 with the global economic downturn. The country enjoys one of the highest per capita incomes in the region. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners and thrive from having the same time zone as eastern US financial centers and a relatively highly educated workforce. The government continues its efforts to reduce unemployment, to encourage direct foreign investment, and to privatize remaining state-owned enterprises. The public debt-to-GDP ratio rose to over 100% in 2009, largely because a sharp slowdown in tourism and financial services led to a wide budget deficit.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$5.279 billion (2009 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$3.595 billion (2009 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
-2.8% (2009 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$18,500 (2009 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 6%
industry:
16%
services:
78% (2000 est.)
Labor force:
175,000 (2007 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 10%
industry:
15%
services:
75% (1996 est.)
Unemployment rate:
10.7% (2003 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%:
NA%
Budget:
revenues: $847 million (including grants)
expenditures:
$886 million (2000 est.)
Public debt:
NA (2009)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
5.5% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
10% (31 December 2008)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
10.03% (31 December 2008)
Stock of money:
$1.637 billion (31 December 2008)
Stock of quasi money:
$3.701 billion (31 December 2008)
Stock of domestic credit:
$4.554 billion (31 December 2008)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA (31 December 2008)
Agriculture - products:
sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
Industries:
tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
Industrial production growth rate:
-3.2% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production:
1.003 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
939.9 million kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2008 est.)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2008 est.)
Oil - production:
1,100 bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - consumption:
9,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
Oil - exports:
1,750 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - imports:
10,390 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - proved reserves:
2.17 million bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
Natural gas - production:
29.17 million cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
29.17 million cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2008 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
141.6 million cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
Current account balance:
$-254 million (2007 est.)
Exports:
$385 million (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities:
manufactures, sugar and molasses, rum, other foods and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
Exports - partners:
Trinidad and Tobago 15.6%, Jamaica 13.9%, Brazil 9.9%, US 8.7%, UK 7.8%, Saint Lucia 7.3%, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 4.5% (2008)
Imports:
$1.586 billion (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities:
consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
Imports - partners:
US 27.1%, Trinidad and Tobago 25.6%, Russia 7.1%, Colombia 6.4%, Germany 4.1% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$620 million (2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$668 million (2003 est.)
Exchange rates:
Barbadian dollars (BBD) per US dollar - NA (2007), 2 (2006), 2 (2005), 2 (2004), 2 (2003)
NOTE: The information regarding Barbados on this page is re-published from the 2010 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Barbados Economy 2010 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Barbados Economy 2010 should be addressed to the CIA.
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This page was last modified 09-Feb-10