Overview: This small private enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north, although the government is encouraging reinvestment in the southern region of Walloon. With few natural resources Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. Three fourths of its trade is with other EC countries. The economy grew at a strong 4% pace during the period 1988-90, but economic growth slowed to a 1% pace in 1991-92 and dropped by 1.5% in 1993. Belgium's public debt has risen to 140% of GDP, and the government is trying to control its expenditures to bring the figure more into line with other industrialized countries.

National product: GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $177.5 billion (1993)

National product real growth rate: -1.5% (1993)

National product per capita: $17,700 (1993)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.8% (1993 est.)

Unemployment rate: 13.5% (March 1994)

Budget:
revenues: $97.8 billion
expenditures: $109.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1989)

Exports: $117 billion (f.o.b., 1992) Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union
commodities: iron and steel, transportation equipment, tractors, diamonds, petroleum products
partners: EC 75.5%, US 3.7%, former Communist countries 1.4% (1991)

Imports: $120 billion (c.i.f., 1992) Belgium-Luxembourg Economic Union
commodities: fuels, grains, chemicals, foodstuffs
partners: EC 73%, US 4.8%, oil-exporting less developed countries 4%, former Communist countries 1.8% (1991)

External debt: $31.3 billion (1992 est.)

Industrial production: growth rate -0.1% (1993 est.); accounts for 25% of GDP

Electricity:
capacity: 17,500,000 kW
production: 68 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 6,790 kWh (1992)

Industries: engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum, coal

Agriculture: accounts for 2.0% of GDP; emphasis on livestock production - beef, veal, pork, milk; major crops are sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; net importer of farm products

Illicit drugs: source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; important gateway country for cocaine entering the European market

Economic aid:
donor: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $5.8 billion

Currency: 1 Belgian franc (BF) = 100 centimes
Exchange rates: Belgian francs (BF) per US$1 - 36.242 (January 1994), 34.597 (1993), 32.150 (1992), 34.148 (1991), 33.418 (1990), 39.404 (1989)

Fiscal year: calendar year

NOTE: The information regarding Belgium on this page is re-published from the 1995 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Belgium Economy 1995 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Belgium Economy 1995 should be addressed to the CIA.