French Guiana Economy - 2005

Economy - overview:
The economy is tied closely to the much larger French economy through subsidies and imports. Besides the French space center at Kourou (which accounts for 25% of GDP), fishing and forestry are the most important economic activities. Forest and woodland cover 90% of the country. The large reserves of tropical hardwoods, not fully exploited, support an expanding sawmill industry that provides sawn logs for export. Cultivation of crops is limited to the coastal area, where the population is largely concentrated; rice and manioc are the major crops. French Guiana is heavily dependent on imports of food and energy. Unemployment is a serious problem, particularly among younger workers.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $1.551 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
NA%

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $8,300 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
58,800 (1997)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 18.2%, industry 21.2%, services, government, and commerce 60.6% (1980)

Unemployment rate:
22% (2001)

Population below poverty line:
NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.5% (2002 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $225 million
expenditures: $390 million, including capital expenditures of $105 million (1996)

Agriculture - products:
corn, rice, manioc (tapioca), sugar, cocoa, vegetables, bananas; cattle, pigs, poultry

Industries:
construction, shrimp processing, forestry products, rum, gold mining

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - production:
460.1 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - consumption:
427.9 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
6,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Exports:
$155 million f.o.b. (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities:
shrimp, timber, gold, rum, rosewood essence, clothing

Exports - partners:
France 62%, Switzerland 7%, US 2% (2001)

Imports:
$625 million c.i.f. (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities:
food (grains, processed meat), machinery and transport equipment, fuels and chemicals

Imports - partners:
France 63%, US, Trinidad and Tobago, Italy (2002 est.)

Debt - external:
$1.2 billion (1988)

Economic aid - recipient:
NA

Currency (code):
euro (EUR)

Exchange rates:
Euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000)