Economy - overview:
Switzerland is a prosperous and stable modern market economy with
low unemployment, a highly skilled labor force, and a per capita GDP
larger than that of the big western European economies. The Swiss in
recent years have brought their economic practices largely into
conformity with the EU's to enhance their international
competitiveness. Switzerland remains a safe haven for investors,
because it has maintained a degree of bank secrecy and has kept up
the franc's long-term external value. Reflecting the anemic economic
conditions of Europe, GDP growth dropped in 2001 to about 0.8%, to
0.2% in 2002, and to -0.3% in 2003.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $233.4 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
0.1% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $32,000 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2%
industry: 34%
services: 64% (2002 est.)
Population below poverty line:
NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1992)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
33.1 (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.5% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
4 million (2001)
Labor force - by occupation:
services 69.1%, industry 26.3%, agriculture 4.6% (1998)
Unemployment rate:
1.9% (2002 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $30 billion
expenditures: $30 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(2001 est.)
Industries:
machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments
Industrial production growth rate:
3.2% (2001)
Electricity - production:
68.68 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 1.3%
hydro: 59.5%
other: 2% (2001)
nuclear: 37.1%
Electricity - consumption:
53.43 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
34.54 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
24.1 billion kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
290,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
10,420 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports:
289,500 bbl/day (2001)
Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
3.093 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
3.093 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Agriculture - products:
grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs
Exports:
$100.3 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products
Exports - partners:
Germany 19.2%, US 10.2%, Italy 9.6%, France 8.9%, UK 7.7% (2002)
Imports:
$94.4 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery, chemicals, vehicles, metals; agricultural products,
textiles
Imports - partners:
Germany 27.4%, France 11.4%, Italy 9.7%, US 8.5%, Russia 5.8%, UK
5.4%, Austria 4.6%, Netherlands 4.1% (2002)
Debt - external:
$NA
Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $1.1 billion (1995)
Currency:
Swiss franc (CHF)
Currency code:
CHF
Exchange rates:
Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.56 (2002), 1.69 (2001), 1.69 (2000),
1.5 (1999), 1.45 (1998)
Fiscal year:
calendar year