Spain Economy - 2004

Economy - overview:
Spain's mixed capitalist economy supports a GDP that on a per capita basis is 80% that of the four leading West European economies. The center-right government of former President AZNAR successfully worked to gain admission to the first group of countries launching the European single currency (the euro) on 1 January 1999. The AZNAR administration continued to advocate liberalization, privatization, and deregulation of the economy and introduced some tax reforms to that end. Unemployment fell steadily under the AZNAR administration but remains high at 11.7%. Growth of 2.4% in 2003 was satisfactory given the background of a faltering European economy. Incoming President RODRIGUEZ ZAPATERO, whose party won the election three days after the Madrid train bombings in March, plans to reduce government intervention in business, combat tax fraud, and support innovation, research and development, but also intends to reintroduce labor market regulations that had been scraped by the AZNAR government. Adjusting to the monetary and other economic policies of an integrated Europe - and reducing unemployment - will pose challenges to Spain over the next few years.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $885.5 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
2.4% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $22,000 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 3.4%
industry: 30.1%
services: 66.5% (2002 est.)

Population below poverty line:
NA% (2000)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.8%
highest 10%: 25.2% (1990)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
32.5 (1990)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2.6% (2003 est.)

Labor force:
17.1 million (2001)

Labor force - by occupation:
services 64%, manufacturing, mining, and construction 29%, agriculture 7% (2001 est.)

Unemployment rate:
11.7% (2003 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $105 billion
expenditures: $109 billion, including capital expenditures of $12.8 billion (2000 est.)

Industries:
textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism

Industrial production growth rate:
0.6% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production:
222.5 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 50.4%
hydro: 18.2%
other: 4.1% (2001)
nuclear: 27.2%

Electricity - consumption:
210.4 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
4.138 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
7.588 billion kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
7,099 bbl/day (2001 est.)

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

Oil - exports:
135,100 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
1.582 million bbl/day (2001)

Oil - proved reserves:
10.5 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
516 million cu m (2001 est.)

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

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

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

Natural gas - proved reserves:
254.9 million cu m (1 January 2002)

Agriculture - products:
grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish

Exports:
$159.4 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
machinery, motor vehicles; foodstuffs, other consumer goods

Exports - partners:
France 19%, Germany 11.4%, UK 9.6%, Portugal 9.5%, Italy 9.3%, US 4.6% (2002)

Imports:
$197.1 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, fuels, chemicals, semifinished goods; foodstuffs, consumer goods

Imports - partners:
France 17%, Germany 16.5%, Italy 8.6%, UK 6.4%, Netherlands 4.8% (2002)

Debt - external:
$90 billion (1993 est.)

Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $1.33 billion (1999)

Currency:
euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by the financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions with the member countries

Currency code:
EUR

Exchange rates:
euros per US dollar - 0.89 (2003), 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999)