Economy - overview:
Revenues of this tiny island have come from exports of phosphates,
but reserves are expected to be exhausted within a few years.
Phosphate production has declined since 1989, as demand has fallen
in traditional markets and as the marginal cost of extracting the
remaining phosphate increases, making it less internationally
competitive. While phosphates have given Nauruans one of the highest
per capita incomes in the Third World, few other resources exist
with most necessities being imported, including fresh water from
Australia. The rehabilitation of mined land and the replacement of
income from phosphates are serious long-term problems. In
anticipation of the exhaustion of Nauru's phosphate deposits,
substantial amounts of phosphate income have been invested in trust
funds to help cushion the transition and provide for Nauru's
economic future. The government has been borrowing heavily from the
trusts to finance fiscal deficits. To cut costs the government has
called for a freeze on wages, a reduction of over-staffed public
service departments, privatization of numerous government agencies,
and closure of some overseas consulates. In recent years Nauru has
encouraged the registration of offshore banks and corporations. Tens
of billions of dollars have been channeled through their accounts.
Few comprehensive statistics on the Nauru economy exist, with
estimates of Nauru's GDP varying widely.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $60 million (2001 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
NA%
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
-3.6% (1993)
Labor force - by occupation:
employed in mining phosphates, public administration, education,
and transportation
Unemployment rate:
0%
Budget:
revenues: $23.4 million
expenditures: $64.8 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(FY 95/96)
Industries:
phosphate mining, offshore banking, coconut products
Industrial production growth rate:
NA%
Electricity - production:
30 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
27.9 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
1,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Agriculture - products:
coconuts
Exports:
$27 million f.o.b. (1995)
Exports - commodities:
phosphates
Exports - partners:
India 46.1%, South Korea 18.3%, Australia 10.6%, New Zealand 7.8%,
Netherlands 5.6% (2002)
Imports:
$33 million c.i.f. (1995)
Imports - commodities:
food, fuel, manufactures, building materials, machinery
Imports - partners:
Australia 59.3%, US 10.1%, Ireland 7.6%, Malaysia 6% (2002)
Debt - external:
$33.3 million
Economic aid - recipient:
$2.25 million from Australia (FY96/97 est.)
Currency:
Australian dollar (AUD)
Currency code:
AUD
Exchange rates:
Australian dollars per US dollar - 1.2641 (2002) 1.9320 (2001),
1.7173 (2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998)
Fiscal year:
1 July - 30 June