Argentina Economy - 2004

Economy - overview:
Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. Over the past decade, however, the country has suffered recurring economic problems of inflation, external debt, capital flight, and budget deficits. Growth in 2000 was a negative 0.8%, as both domestic and foreign investors remained skeptical of the government's ability to pay debts and maintain the peso's fixed exchange rate with the US dollar. The economic situation worsened in 2001 with the widening of spreads on Argentine bonds, massive withdrawals from the banks, and a further decline in consumer and investor confidence. Government efforts to achieve a "zero deficit," to stabilize the banking system, and to restore economic growth proved inadequate in the face of the mounting economic problems. The peso's peg to the dollar was abandoned in January 2002, and the peso was floated in February; the exchange rate plunged and inflation picked up rapidly, but by mid-2002 the economy had stabilized, albeit at a lower level. Strong demand for the peso compelled the Central Bank to intervene in foreign exchange markets to curb its appreciation in 2003. Led by record exports, the economy began to recover with output up 8% in 2003, unemployment falling, and inflation reduced to under 4% at year-end.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $432.7 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
8% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $11,200 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 5%
industry: 28%
services: 67% (2000 est.)

Population below poverty line:
51.7% (May 2003)

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

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
3.7% (2003, yearend)

Labor force:
15 million (1999)

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

Unemployment rate:
16.3% (September 2003)

Budget:
revenues: $44 billion
expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)

Industries:
food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel

Industrial production growth rate:
7% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production:
97.17 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 52.2%
hydro: 40.8%
other: 0.2% (2001)
nuclear: 6.7%

Electricity - consumption:
92.12 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
5.662 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
7.417 billion kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
828,600 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
486,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Oil - proved reserves:
2.927 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
37.15 billion cu m (2001 est.)

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

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

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

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

Agriculture - products:
sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock

Exports:
$29.57 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles

Exports - partners:
Brazil 18.8%, Chile 11.5%, US 11.5%, Spain 4.5%, China 4.2%, Netherlands 4.1% (2002)

Imports:
$13.27 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics

Imports - partners:
Brazil 28.1%, US 20.1%, Germany 6.2% (2002)

Debt - external:
$142 billion (2002 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$10 billion (2001 est.)

Currency:
Argentine peso (ARS)

Currency code:
ARS

Exchange rates:
Argentine pesos per US dollar - 2.9 (2003), 3.06 (2002), 1 (2001), 1 (2000), 1 (1999)