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![]() ![]() Nicaragua Economy
Economyoverview: Prior to Hurricane Mitch in the fall of 1998, Nicaragua had been pursuing a number of impressive economic reforms and had begun to shed the legacy of a decade of civil war and economic mismanagement by posting strong annual growth numbers. The storm has put the reform effort on hold and has changed economic forecasts for the foreseeable futureNicaragua, the poorest country in Central America was one of the hardest hit by the hurricane. Nicaragua sustained approximately $1 billion in damages and will probably see GDP growth slow by at least one percentage point in 1999. Hardest hit was the all-important agriculture sector, which is responsible for the majority of exports. As a result, the trade deficit is likely to balloon in 1999 to roughly $900 million. Significant aid and relief have helped to stabilize the country. In addition, the Paris Club and other creditors have offered substantial debt relief. Nevertheless, additional financing will be needed to restore the economy to its pre-Mitch condition. GDP: purchasing power parity$11.6 billion (1998 est.) GDPreal growth rate: 4% (1998 est.) GDPper capita: purchasing power parity$2,500 (1998 est.)
GDPcomposition by sector:
Population below poverty line: 50.3% (1993 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 16% (1998 est.) Labor force: 1.5 million Labor forceby occupation: services 54%, agriculture 31%, industry 15% (1995 est.) Unemployment rate: 14%; underemployment 36% (1997 est.)
Budget:
Industries: food processing, chemicals, metal products, textiles, clothing, petroleum refining and distribution, beverages, footwear Industrial production growth rate: 1.4% (1994 est.) Electricityproduction: 1.665 billion kWh (1996)
Electricityproduction by source:
Electricityconsumption: 1.665 billion kWh (1996) Electricityexports: 0 kWh (1996) Electricityimports: 0 kWh (1996) Agricultureproducts: coffee, bananas, sugarcane, cotton, rice, corn, cassava (tapioca), citrus, beans; beef, veal, pork, poultry, dairy products Exports: $704 million (f.o.b., 1997) Exportscommodities: coffee, seafood, meat, sugar, gold, bananas Exportspartners: US, Central America, Germany, Canada Imports: $1.45 billion (c.i.f., 1997) Importscommodities: consumer goods, machinery and equipment, petroleum products Importspartners: Central America, US, Venezuela, Japan Debtexternal: $6 billion (1996 est.) Economic aidrecipient: $839.9 million (1995) Currency: 1 gold cordoba (C$) = 100 centavos Exchange rates: gold cordobas (C$) per US$111.14 (December 1998), 10.58 (1998), 9.45 (1997), 8.44 (1996), 7.55 (1995), 6.72 (1994) Fiscal year: calendar year
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