Bahamas, The Economy 2008

Economy - overview:
The Bahamas is one of the wealthiest Caribbean countries with an economy heavily dependent on tourism and offshore banking. Tourism together with tourism-driven construction and manufacturing accounts for approximately 60% of GDP and directly or indirectly employs half of the archipelago's labor force. Steady growth in tourism receipts and a boom in construction of new hotels, resorts, and residences had led to solid GDP growth in recent years, but tourist arrivals have been on the decline since 2006. Financial services constitute the second-most important sector of the Bahamian economy and, when combined with business services, account for about 36% of GDP. However, since December 2000, when the government enacted new regulations on the financial sector, many international businesses have left The Bahamas. Manufacturing and agriculture combined contribute approximately a tenth of GDP and show little growth, despite government incentives aimed at those sectors. Overall growth prospects in the short run rest heavily on the fortunes of the tourism sector. Tourism, in turn, depends on growth in the US, the source of more than 80% of the visitors.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$6.925 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$6.449 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
2.8% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$22,700 (2007 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3%
industry: 7%
services: 90% (2001 est.)

Labor force:
181,900 (2006)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 5%, industry 5%, tourism 50%, other services 40% (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate:
7.6% (2006 est.)

Population below poverty line:
9.3% (2004)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: 27% (2000)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.4% (2007 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $1.03 billion
expenditures: $1.03 billion (FY04/05)

Agriculture - products:
citrus, vegetables; poultry

Industries:
tourism, banking, cement, oil transshipment, salt, rum, aragonite, pharmaceuticals, spiral-welded steel pipe

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - production:
1.894 billion kWh (2005)

Electricity - consumption:
1.762 billion kWh (2005)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2005)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2005)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - consumption:
26,000 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - exports:
transshipments of 41,290 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - imports:
68,250 bbl/day (2004)

Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2005 est.)

natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2005)

natural gas - proved reserves:
0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Exports:
$674 million (2006)

Exports - commodities:
mineral products and salt, animal products, rum, chemicals, fruit and vegetables

Exports - partners:
Spain 23.8%, US 21.1%, Poland 14.4%, Germany 7.3%, UK 6.1%, Guatemala 5.2% (2006)

Imports:
$2.401 billion (2006)

Imports - partners:
US 24.5%, Brazil 15.6%, Japan 13%, South Korea 7.8%, Spain 7.1% (2006)

Economic aid - recipient:
$4.78 million (2004)

Debt - external:
$342.6 million (2004 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA

Currency (code):
Bahamian dollar (BSD)

Exchange rates:
Bahamian dollars per US dollar - 1 (2007), 1 (2006), 1 (2005), 1 (2004), 1 (2003)