Venezuela Economy - 2004

Economy - overview:
Venezuela continues to be highly dependent on the petroleum sector, which accounts for roughly one-third of GDP, around 80% of export earnings, and more than half of government operating revenues. Despite higher oil prices at the end of 2002 and into 2003, domestic political instability, culminating in a disastrous two-month national oil strike from December 2002 to February 2003, temporarily halted economic activity. The economy remained in depression in 2003, declining by 9.2% after an 8.9% fall in 2002. In late 2003, President CHAVEZ committed himself to $1 billion in new social programs, money the government does not have.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $117.9 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
-9.2% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 5%
industry: 50%
services: 45% (2001)

Population below poverty line:
47% (1998 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 0.8%
highest 10%: 36.5% (1998)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
49.5 (1998)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
31.1% (2003 est.)

Labor force:
9.9 million (1999)

Labor force - by occupation:
services 64%, industry 23%, agriculture 13% (1997 est.)

Unemployment rate:
18% (2003 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $20.1 billion
expenditures: $23.3 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.6 billion (2002)

Industries:
petroleum, iron ore mining, construction materials, food processing, textiles, steel, aluminum, motor vehicle assembly

Industrial production growth rate:
-5.4% (2002 est.)

Electricity - production:
87.6 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 31.7%
hydro: 68.3%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption:
81.47 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
3.08 million bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
505,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

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

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

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

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

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

Natural gas - proved reserves:
4.202 trillion cu m (1 January 2002)

Agriculture - products:
corn, sorghum, sugarcane, rice, bananas, vegetables, coffee; beef, pork, milk, eggs; fish

Exports:
$25.86 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
petroleum, bauxite and aluminum, steel, chemicals, agricultural products, basic manufactures

Exports - partners:
US 45.1%, Netherlands Antilles 12.8%, Dominican Republic 2.8% (2002)

Imports:
$10.71 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
raw materials, machinery and equipment, transport equipment, construction materials

Imports - partners:
US 32.1%, Colombia 8%, Brazil 6.2%, Germany 4.6%, Mexico 4.4%, Italy 4.1% (2002)

Debt - external:
$20.8 billion (2003)

Economic aid - recipient:
$74 million (2000)

Currency:
bolivar (VEB)

Currency code:
VEB

Exchange rates:
bolivares per US dollar - 1,607.79 (2003), 1,160.95 (2002), 723.67 (2001), 679.96 (2000), 605.72 (1999)