Economy - overview: Austria with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market. Through privatization efforts, the 1996-98 budget consolidation programs, and austerity measures, Austria has brought its total public sector deficit down to 2.1% of GDP in 1999 and public debt - at 63.1% of GDP in 1998 - more or less in line with the 60% of GDP required by the EMU's Maastricht criteria. Cuts mainly have affected the civil service and Austria's generous social benefit system, the two major causes of the government's deficit. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy and deregulate the service sector. Growth, which slowed to 2.0% in 1999, probably will rebound to 2.8% in both 2000 and 2001.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $190.6 billion (1999 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 2% (1999 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $23,400 (1999 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 1.3%
industry: 32.4%
services: 66.3% (1998 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.5% (1999)

Labor force: 3.7 million (1999)

Labor force - by occupation: services 68%, industry and crafts 29%, agriculture and forestry 3% (1999 est.)

Unemployment rate: 4.4% (1999)

Budget:
revenues: $54 billion
expenditures: $59.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)

Industries: construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism (1997)

Industrial production growth rate: 2.3% (1999)

Electricity - production: 56.066 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 31.46%
hydro: 65.92%
nuclear: 0%
other: 2.62% (1998)

Electricity - consumption: 51.891 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports: 10.5 billion kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports: 10.25 billion kWh (1998)

Agriculture - products: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber

Exports: $62.9 billion (1999 est.)

Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs (1998)

Exports - partners: EU 65% (Germany 36%, Italy 9%, France 5%), Switzerland 5%, Hungary 5%, US 4.5% (1999 est.)

Imports: $69.9 billion (1999 est.)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs (1998)

Imports - partners: EU 70% (Germany 42%, Italy 8%, France 5%), US 5%, Hungary 3%, Switzerland 3% (1999 est.)

Debt - external: $31.7 billion (1998)

Economic aid - donor: ODA, $452 million (1998)

Currency: 1 Austrian schilling (AS) = 100 groschen

Exchange rates: euros per US$1 - 0.9867 (January 2000), 0.9386 (1999); Austrian schillings (AS) per US$1 - 11.86 (January 1999), 12.91 (1999), 12.379 (1998), 12.204 (1997), 10.587 (1996), 10.081 (1995)
note: on 1 January 1999, the EU introduced a common currency that is now being used by financial institutions in some member countries at a fixed rate of 13.7603 Austrian shillings per euro; the euro will replace the local currency in consenting countries for all transactions in 2002

Fiscal year: calendar year