Economy of Bolivia
| Economy - overview: | Bolivia, long one of the poorest and least developed Latin American countries, reformed its economy after suffering a disastrous economic crisis in the early 1980s. The reforms spurred real GDP growth, which averaged 4% in the 1990s, and poverty rates fell. Economic growth, however, lagged again beginning in 1999 because of a global slowdown and homegrown factors such as political turmoil, civil unrest, and soaring fiscal deficits, all of which hurt investor confidence. In 2003, violent protests against the pro-foreign investment economic policies of ex-President SANCHEZ DE LOZADA led to his resignation and the cancellation of plans to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large northern hemisphere markets. In 2005, the government passed a controversial natural gas law that imposed significantly higher taxes on the oil and gas firms and required production firms to sign new operating contracts, which were completed in October 2006. Bolivian officials are in the process of revamping the defunct state-owned oil company and acquiring majority ownership of five gas production, transportation, refining, and storage companies. The MORALES administration plans to increase state control over other sectors as well, including mining, electricity, telecommunications, transportation, and forestry. Real GDP growth in 2003-06 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia's fiscal position has improved in recent years, and the country had a record 6% fiscal surplus for 2006. In 2005, the G8 announced a $2 billion debt-forgiveness plan over the next few decades. The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank forgave a total of approximately $1.8 billion of Bolivian debt in 2006 that has helped reduce fiscal pressures on the government. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | $27.87 billion (2006 est.) |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | $10.33 billion (2006 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 4.5% (2006 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | $3,100 (2006 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 12.8% industry: 36.1% services: 51.2% (2006 est.) |
| Labor force: | 4.3 million (2006 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA% |
| Unemployment rate: | 7.8% in urban areas; widespread underemployment (2006 est.) |
| Population below poverty line: | 64% (2004 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 1.3% highest 10%: 32% (1999) |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index: | 60.6 (2002) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | 4.3% (2006 est.) |
| Investment (gross fixed): | 12.4% of GDP (2006 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $4.153 billion expenditures: $3.619 billion; including capital expenditures of $741 million (2006 est.) |
| Agriculture - products: | soybeans, coffee, coca, cotton, corn, sugarcane, rice, potatoes; timber |
| Industries: | mining, smelting, petroleum, food and beverages, tobacco, handicrafts, clothing |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 5.7% (2004 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 4.472 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - production by source: | fossil fuel: 44.4% hydro: 54% nuclear: 0% other: 1.5% (2001) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 4.168 billion kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - exports: | 0 kWh (2004) |
| Electricity - imports: | 9 million kWh (2004) |
| Oil - production: | 42,000 bbl/day (2005 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 47,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | NA bbl/day |
| Oil - imports: | NA bbl/day |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 440.5 million bbl (1 January 2005) |
| Natural gas - production: | 10.05 billion cu m (2004 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 2.14 billion cu m (2004 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports: | 7.91 billion cu m (2004 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports: | 0 cu m (2004 est.) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 679.6 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.) |
| Current account balance: | $688 million (2006 est.) |
| Exports: | $3.668 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin |
| Exports - partners: | Brazil 42.7%, US 12%, Argentina 10.6%, Colombia 7.5%, Japan 6.1%, Peru 4.7% (2006) |
| Imports: | $2.934 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans |
| Imports - partners: | Brazil 24.6%, Argentina 18.8%, Chile 12.2%, US 9.2%, Peru 7.3% (2006) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $3.303 billion (2006 est.) |
| Debt - external: | $5.916 billion (2006 est.) |
| Economic aid - recipient: | $221 million (2005 est.) |
| Currency (code): | boliviano (BOB) |
| Currency code: | BOB |
| Exchange rates: | bolivianos per US dollar - 8.0159 (2006), 8.0661 (2005), 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002) |
| Fiscal year: | calendar year |