Economy - overview:
Syria's predominantly statist economy has been growing, on average,
more slowly than its 2.4% annual population growth rate, causing a
persistent decline in per capita GDP. Recent legislation allows
private banks to operate in Syria, although a private banking sector
will take years and further government cooperation to develop.
External factors such as the international war on terrorism, the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the war between the US-led
coalition and Iraq probably will drive real annual GDP growth levels
back below their 3.5% spike in 2002. A long-run economic constraint
is the pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth,
industrial expansion, and increased water pollution.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $63.48 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
3.6% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $3,700 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 27%
industry: 23%
services: 50% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line:
15%-25%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
0.9% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
5.2 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture, industry, services NA (2002)
Unemployment rate:
20% (2002 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $6 billion
expenditures: $7 billion, including capital expenditures of $3.6
billion (2002 est.)
Industries:
petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate
rock mining
Industrial production growth rate:
NA%
Electricity - production:
23.26 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 57.6%
hydro: 42.4%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
21.63 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
522,700 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
265,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA (2001)
Oil - imports:
NA (2001)
Oil - proved reserves:
2.4 billion bbl (37257)
Natural gas - production:
5.84 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
5.84 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
240.7 billion cu m (37257)
Agriculture - products:
wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets;
beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk
Exports:
$6.2 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
crude oil 70%, petroleum products 7%, fruits and vegetables 5%,
cotton fiber 4%, clothing 3%, meat and live animals 2% (2000 est.)
Exports - partners:
Germany 19.1%, Italy 17.5%, Turkey 7.8%, France 7.5%, Lebanon 5.2%
(2002)
Imports:
$4.9 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment 21%, food and livestock 18%,
metal and metal products 15%, chemicals and chemical products 10%
(2000 est.)
Imports - partners:
Italy 8.3%, Germany 7.4%, China 5.7%, South Korea 4.8%, France
4.6%, US 4.4%, Turkey 4.1% (2002)
Debt - external:
$22 billion (2002 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$199 million (1997 est.)
Currency:
Syrian pound (SYP)
Currency code:
SYP
Exchange rates:
Syrian pounds per US dollar - (Official rate): 11.23 (2002), 11.23
(2001), 11.23 (2000), 11.23 (1999), 11.23 (1998), (Free market
rate): 49.65 (2001), 49.4 (2000), 51.7 (1999), 52 (1998)
Fiscal year:
calendar year