| Economy | Saint Lucia |
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Economy - overview:
|
The island nation has been able to attract foreign business and investment, especially in its offshore banking and tourism industries, with a surge in foreign direct investment in 2006, attributed to the construction of several tourism projects. Although crops such as bananas, mangos, and avocados continue to be grown for export, tourism provides Saint Lucia's main source of income and the industry is the island's biggest employer. The tourism sector is likely to face declining revenues with the global economic downturn as US and European travel declines. The manufacturing sector is the most diverse in the Eastern Caribbean area, and the government is trying to revitalize the banana industry, although recent hurricanes have caused exports to contract. Saint Lucia is vulnerable to a variety of external shocks including volatile tourism receipts, natural disasters, and dependence on foreign oil. The public debt-to-GDP ratio is about 70% and high debt servicing obligations constrain the KING administration's ability to respond to adverse external shocks. Economic fundamentals remain solid, even though unemployment needs to be reduced. |
GDP (purchasing power parity):
|
$1.801 billion (2008 est.)
$1.761 billion (2007)
$1.732 billion (2006)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars |
GDP - per capita (PPP):
|
$11,300 (2008 est.)
$11,100 (2007 est.)
$11,000 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars |
GDP (official exchange rate):
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$1.031 billion (2008 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate:
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2.3% (2008 est.)
1.7% (2007 est.)
4.9% (2006 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 5%
industry: 15%
services: 80% (2005 est.) |
Investment (gross fixed):
|
void |
Population below poverty line:
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NA% |
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
|
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
|
void |
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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1.9% (2007 est.) |
Central bank discount rate:
|
6.5% (31 December 2007) |
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
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10.12% (31 December 2007) |
Stock of money:
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$264.7 million (31 December 2007) |
Stock of money - per capita:
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1,652 USD per capita |
Stock of quasi money:
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$720.9 million (31 December 2007) |
Stock of quasi money - per capita:
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4,499 USD per capita |
Stock of domestic credit:
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$1.217 billion (31 December 2007) |
Stock of domestic credit - per capita:
|
7,594 USD per capita |
Labor force:
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43,800 (2001 est.) |
Labor force participation rate:
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27.33 % of population |
Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture: 21.7%
industry: 24.7%
services: 53.6% (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate:
|
20% (2003 est.) |
Budget:
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revenues: $141.2 million
expenditures: $146.7 million (2000 est.) |
Budget revenues per capita:
|
882 USD per capita |
Public debt:
|
void |
Industries:
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clothing, assembly of electronic components, beverages, corrugated cardboard boxes, tourism; lime processing, coconut processing |
Industrial production growth rate:
|
void |
Electricity - production:
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325 million kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - production per capita:
|
2,028 kWh per capita |
Electricity - consumption:
|
289.2 million kWh (2006 est.) |
Electricity - consumption - per capita:
|
1,805 kWh per capita |
Electricity - exports:
|
0 kWh (2007 est.) |
Electricity - imports:
|
0 kWh (2007 est.) |
Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2007 est.) |
Oil - production per capita:
|
void |
Oil - consumption:
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2,780 bbl/day (2006 est.) |
Oil - consumption - per capita:
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6.33 bbl/year per capita |
Oil - exports:
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0 bbl/day (2005) |
Oil - imports:
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2,631 bbl/day (2005) |
Oil - proved reserves:
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0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.) |
Natural gas - production:
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0 cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - production per capita:
|
void |
Natural gas - consumption:
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0 cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - consumption - per capita:
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void |
Natural gas - exports:
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0 cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - imports:
|
0 cu m (2007 est.) |
Natural gas - proved reserves:
|
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products:
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bananas, coconuts, vegetables, citrus, root crops, cocoa |
Current account balance:
|
-$199 million (2007 est.) |
Current account balance - per capita:
|
-1,241 USD per capita |
Exports:
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$288 million (2006) |
Exports per capita:
|
1,798 USD per capita |
Exports - commodities:
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bananas 41%, clothing, cocoa, vegetables, fruits, coconut oil |
Exports - partners:
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US 24.5%, France 23.2%, UK 19.3%, Antigua and Barbuda 5%, Dominica 4.9%, Barbados 4.4%, Trinidad and Tobago 4.1% (2007) |
Imports:
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$791 million (2006) |
Imports per capita:
|
4,936 USD per capita |
Imports - commodities:
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food 23%, manufactured goods 21%, machinery and transportation equipment 19%, chemicals, fuels |
Imports - partners:
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Brazil 63.6%, US 10.2%, Trinidad and Tobago 8.2% (2007) |
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
|
void |
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold - per capita:
|
void |
Debt - external:
|
$257 million (2004) |
Debt - external - per capita:
|
1,604 USD per capita |
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
|
void |
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home - per capita:
|
void |
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
|
void |
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad - per capita:
|
void |
Market value of publicly traded shares:
|
void |
Market value of publicly traded shares - per capita:
|
void |
Economic aid - donor:
|
void |
Economic aid - recipient:
|
$11.06 million (2005) |
Economic aid - recipient per capita:
|
70 USD per capita |
Currency (code):
|
East Caribbean dollar (XCD) |
Exchange rates:
|
East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar - 2.7 (2007), 2.7 (2006), 2.7 (2005), 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003) |
Fiscal year:
|
1 April - 31 March |
|
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