| People | Nicaragua |
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Economy - overview:
|
Nicaragua has widespread underemployment, one of the highest degrees of income inequality in the world, and the third lowest per capita income in the Western Hemisphere. While the country has progressed toward macroeconomic stability in the past few years, annual GDP growth has been far too low to meet the country's needs, forcing the country to rely on international economic assistance to meet fiscal and debt financing obligations. In early 2004, Nicaragua secured some $4.5 billion in foreign debt reduction under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative, and in October 2007, the IMF approved a new poverty reduction and growth facility (PRGF) program that should create fiscal space for social spending and investment. The continuity of a relationship with the IMF reinforces donor confidence, despite private sector concerns surrounding Ortega, which has dampened investment. The US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) has been in effect since April 2006 and has expanded export opportunities for many agricultural and manufactured goods. Energy shortages fueled by high oil prices, however, are a serious bottleneck to growth. |
GDP (purchasing power parity):
|
$15.84 billion (2007 est.) |
GDP (official exchange rate):
|
$5.723 billion (2007 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate:
|
3.8% (2007 est.) |
GDP - per capita (PPP):
|
$2,600 (2007 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 17.1%
industry: 25.9%
services: 57% (2007 est.) |
Investment (gross fixed):
|
28.9% of GDP (2007 est.) |
Population below poverty line:
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48% (2005) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: 2.2%
highest 10%: 33.8% (2001) |
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
|
43.1 (2001) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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11.1% (2007 est.) |
Labor force:
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2.262 million (2007 est.) |
Labor force participation rate:
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39.10 % of population |
Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: 29%
industry: 19%
services: 52% (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate:
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3.6% plus underemployment of 46.5% (2007 est.) |
Budget:
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revenues: $1.115 billion
expenditures: $1.291 billion (2007 est.) |
Budget revenues per capita:
|
193 USD per capita |
Public debt:
|
63% of GDP (2007 est.) |
Industries:
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food processing, chemicals, machinery and metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear, wood |
Industrial production growth rate:
|
3% (2007 est.) |
Electricity - production:
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2.778 billion kWh (2006) |
Electricity - production per capita:
|
481 kWh per capita |
Electricity - consumption:
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2.929 billion kWh (2006) |
Electricity - consumption - per capita:
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507 kWh per capita |
Electricity - exports:
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8 million kWh (2005) |
Electricity - imports:
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69.34 million kWh (2006) |
Oil - production:
|
0 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
Oil - production per capita:
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void |
Oil - consumption:
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28,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
Oil - consumption - per capita:
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1.77 bbl/year per capita |
Oil - exports:
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1,397 bbl/day (2004) |
Oil - imports:
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15,560 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
Oil - proved reserves:
|
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.) |
Natural gas - production:
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0 cu m (2005 est.) |
Natural gas - production per capita:
|
void |
Natural gas - consumption:
|
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
Natural gas - consumption - per capita:
|
void |
Natural gas - exports:
|
0 cu m (2005 est.) |
Natural gas - imports:
|
0 cu m (2005) |
Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products:
|
coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, tobacco, sesame, soya, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products; shrimp, lobsters |
Current account balance:
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-$989 million (2007 est.) |
Current account balance - per capita:
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-170 USD per capita |
Exports:
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$2.235 billion f.o.b.; note - includes free trade zones (2007 est.) |
Exports per capita:
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387 USD per capita |
Exports - commodities:
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coffee, beef, shrimp and lobster, tobacco, sugar, gold, peanuts |
Exports - partners:
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US 65.2%, El Salvador 6.9%, Honduras 3.8% (2006) |
Imports:
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$3.935 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.) |
Imports per capita:
|
681 USD per capita |
Imports - commodities:
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consumer goods, machinery and equipment, raw materials, petroleum products |
Imports - partners:
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US 20.1%, Mexico 13.9%, Venezuela 9.4%, Costa Rica 6.9%, Guatemala 5.4%, China 4.3% (2006) |
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|
$1.103 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold - per capita:
|
191 USD per capita |
Debt - external:
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$3.335 billion (31 December 2007 est.) |
Debt - external - per capita:
|
577 USD per capita |
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
|
void |
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
|
void |
Market value of publicly traded shares:
|
$NA |
Economic aid - donor:
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void |
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$471 million (2006 est.) |
Economic aid - recipient per capita:
|
82 USD per capita |
Currency (code):
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gold cordoba (NIO) |
Exchange rates:
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gold cordobas per US dollar - 18.457 (2007), 17.582 (2006), 16.733 (2005), 15.937 (2004), 15.105 (2003) |
Fiscal year:
|
calendar year |
|
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