Saint Kitts and Nevis Economy - 2005

Economy - overview:
Sugar was the traditional mainstay of the Saint Kitts economy until the 1970s. Although the crop still dominates the agricultural sector, activities such as tourism, export-oriented manufacturing, and offshore banking have assumed larger roles in the economy. Tourism revenues are now the chief source of the islands' foreign exchange. The opening of a 470-room resort in February 2003 was expected to bring in much-needed revenue.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $339 million (2002 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
-1.9% (2002 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $8,800 (2002 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 25.8%
services: 70.7% (2001)

Labor force:
18,170 (June 1995)

Labor force - by occupation:
NA

Unemployment rate:
4.5% (1997)

Population below poverty line:
NA%

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.7% (2001 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $89.7 million
expenditures: $128.2 million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (2003 est.)

Agriculture - products:
sugarcane, rice, yams, vegetables, bananas; fish

Industries:
sugar processing, tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear, beverages

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - production:
105.8 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - consumption:
98.44 million kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2002)

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

Oil - consumption:
710 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Exports:
$70 million (2002 est.)

Exports - commodities:
machinery, food, electronics, beverages, tobacco

Exports - partners:
US 58%, Canada 9%, Portugal 8.3%, UK 6.9% (2004)

Imports:
$195 million (2002 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery, manufactures, food, fuels

Imports - partners:
US 33.1%, Italy 19.4%, Trinidad and Tobago 10.5%, UK 9.8%, Denmark 6% (2004)

Debt - external:
$171 million (2001)

Economic aid - recipient:
$8 million (2001)

Currency (code):
East Caribbean dollar (XCD)

Exchange rates:
East Caribbean dollars per US dollar - 2.7 (2004), 2.7 (2003), 2.7 (2002), 2.7 (2001), 2.7 (2000)