Economy - overview:
Peru's economy reflects its varied geography - an arid coastal region, the Andes further inland, and tropical lands bordering Colombia and Brazil. Abundant mineral resources are found in the mountainous areas, and Peru's coastal waters provide excellent fishing grounds. However, overdependence on minerals and metals subjects the economy to fluctuations in world prices, and a lack of infrastructure deters trade and investment. After several years of inconsistent economic performance, the Peruvian economy was one of the fastest growing in Latin America in 2002 and 2003, growing by 5% and 4%, respectively, with the exchange rate stable and an annual inflation lower than 2%. Foreign direct investment also was strong, thanks to the ongoing Camisea natural gas pipeline project (scheduled to begin operations in 2004) and investments in gold mining. Risk premiums on Peruvian bonds on secondary markets reached historically low levels in late 2003, reflecting investor optimism and the government's fiscal restraint. Despite the strong macroeconomic performance, political intrigue and allegations of corruption continued to swirl in 2003, with the TOLEDO administration growing increasingly unpopular, and local and foreign concern rising that the political turmoil could place the country's hard-won fiscal and financial stability at risk. Moreover, as of late 2003, unemployment had yet to respond to the strong growth in economic activity, owing in part to rigid labor market regulations that act as an impediment to hiring.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $146.9 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
4% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $5,200 (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 9.6%
industry: 26%
services: 64.4% (2001 est.)
Population below poverty line:
54% (2003 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 35.4% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
46.2 (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.2% (2003 est.)
Labor force:
7.5 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture, mining and quarrying, manufacturing, construction, transport, services
Unemployment rate:
13.4%; widespread underemployment (2003 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $10.4 billion
expenditures: $10.4 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2002 est.)
Industries:
mining of metals, petroleum, fishing, textiles, clothing, food processing, cement, auto assembly, steel, shipbuilding, metal fabrication
Industrial production growth rate:
6.5% (2002 est.)
Electricity - production:
20.59 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 14.5%
hydro: 84.7%
other: 0.8% (2001)
nuclear: 0%
Electricity - consumption:
19.15 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
95,100 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
161,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
NA
Oil - imports:
NA
Oil - proved reserves:
614.7 million bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production:
370 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
370 million cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
245.1 billion cu m (1 January 2002)
Agriculture - products:
coffee, cotton, sugarcane, rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, plantains, coca; poultry, beef, dairy products, wool; fish
Exports:
$8.954 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Exports - commodities:
fish and fish products, gold, copper, zinc, crude petroleum and byproducts, lead, coffee, sugar, cotton
Exports - partners:
US 26.1%, UK 11.6%, China 7.9%, Switzerland 7.5%, Japan 4.9% (2002)
Imports:
$8.244 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum, iron and steel, chemicals, pharmaceuticals
Imports - partners:
US 27.5%, Spain 8.3%, Chile 7.9%, Brazil 4.7%, Colombia 4.6% (2002)
Debt - external:
$29.2 billion (2002 est.)
Economic aid - recipient:
$895.1 million (1995)
Currency:
nuevo sol (PEN)
Currency code:
PEN
Exchange rates:
nuevo sol per US dollar - 3.48 (2003), 3.52 (2002), 3.51 (2001), 3.49 (2000), 3.38 (1999)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
