Economy - overview:
Tourism, petroleum refining, and offshore finance are the mainstays
of this small economy, which is closely tied to the outside world.
Although GDP has declined or remained even in each of the past six
years, the islands enjoy a high per capita income and a
well-developed infrastructure compared with other countries in the
region. Almost all consumer and capital goods are imported, the US
and Mexico being the major suppliers. Poor soils and inadequate
water supplies hamper the development of agriculture.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
0% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 1%
industry: 15%
services: 84% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.4% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
89,000
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (2000 est.)
Unemployment rate:
15% (1998 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $710.8 million
expenditures: $741.6 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1997 est.)
Industries:
tourism (Curacao, Sint Maarten, and Bonaire), petroleum refining
(Curacao), petroleum transshipment facilities (Curacao and Bonaire),
light manufacturing (Curacao)
Industrial production growth rate:
NA%
Electricity - production:
1.061 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
986.8 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
72,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Agriculture - products:
aloes, sorghum, peanuts, vegetables, tropical fruit
Exports:
$553 million f.o.b. (2002)
Exports - commodities:
petroleum products
Exports - partners:
US 20.9%, Guatemala 12%, Venezuela 10.5%, Guyana 6.6%, Singapore
4.4%, Cuba 4% (2002)
Imports:
$1.43 billion f.o.b. (2002)
Imports - commodities:
crude petroleum, food, manufactures
Imports - partners:
Venezuela 60.8%, Mexico 11.7%, US 9.7% (2002)
Debt - external:
$1.35 billion (1996)
Economic aid - recipient:
IMF provided $61 million in 2000, and the Netherlands continued its
support with $40 million
Currency:
Netherlands Antillean guilder (ANG)
Currency code:
ANG
Exchange rates:
Netherlands Antillean guilders per US dollar - 1.79 (2002), 1.79
(2001), 1.79 (2000), 1.79 (1999), 1.79 (1998)
Fiscal year:
calendar year