Bolivia Economy - 2005

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 percent 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 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. Foreign investment dried up as companies adopted a wait-and-see attitude regarding new President Carlos MESA's willingness to protect investor rights in the face of increased demands by radical groups that the government expropriate foreign-owned assets. Real GDP growth in 2003 and 2004 - helped by increased demand for natural gas in neighboring Brazil - was positive, but still below the levels seen during the 1990s. Bolivia remains dependent on foreign aid from multilateral lenders and foreign governments.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $22.33 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
3.7% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $2,600 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 13%
industry: 28%
services: 59% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
3.8 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%

Unemployment rate:
9.2% in urban areas
note: widespread underemployment (2003 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:
44.7 (1999)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.9% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
10.4% of GDP (2003 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $2.264 billion
expenditures: $2.769 billion, including capital expenditures of $741 million (2004 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:
4.132 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - consumption:
3.848 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
3 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
9 million kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
39,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
49,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Oil - proved reserves:
458.8 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
8.44 billion cu m (2004 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
1.15 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
2.9 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
727.2 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance:
$273 million (2004 est.)

Exports:
$1.986 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
natural gas, soybeans and soy products, crude petroleum, zinc ore, tin

Exports - partners:
Brazil 33.9%, US 12.7%, Colombia 11.8%, Venezuela 11.6%, Peru 5.1%, Japan 4.2% (2004)

Imports:
$1.595 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
petroleum products, plastics, paper, aircraft and aircraft parts, prepared foods, automobiles, insecticides, soybeans

Imports - partners:
Brazil 25.3%, Argentina 17%, US 13.1%, Chile 9.2%, Peru 7.2% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$1.214 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external:
$5.439 billion (June 2004 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$681 million (2002)

Currency (code):
boliviano (BOB)

Exchange rates:
bolivianos per US dollar - 7.9363 (2004), 7.6592 (2003), 7.17 (2002), 6.6069 (2001), 6.1835 (2000)