Yemen Economy - 2004

Economy - overview:
Yemen, one of the poorest countries in the Arab world, reported strong growth in the mid-1990s with the onset of oil production, but has been harmed by periodic declines in oil prices. Yemen has embarked on an IMF-supported structural adjustment program designed to modernize and streamline the economy, which has led to substantial foreign debt relief and restructuring. International donors, meeting in Paris in October 2002, agreed on a further $2.3 billion economic support package. Yemen has worked to maintain tight control over spending and to implement additional components of the IMF program. A high population growth rate and internal political dissension complicate the government's task. Plans include a diversification of the economy, encouragement of tourism, and more efficient use of scarce water resources.

GDP:
purchasing power parity - $15.22 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
3.1% (2003 est.)

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

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 14.6%
industry: 42.3%
services: 43.1% (2001)

Population below poverty line:
15.7% (2001)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3%
highest 10%: 25.9% (2003)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
33.4 (1998)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
12.3% (2003 est.)

Labor force:
3.7 million (2003 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
most people are employed in agriculture and herding; services, construction, industry, and commerce account for less than one-fourth of the labor force

Unemployment rate:
35% (2003 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $3.78 billion
expenditures: $4.13 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2004 est.)

Industries:
crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of cotton textiles and leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; small aluminum products factory; cement

Industrial production growth rate:
3% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production:
3.01 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0%

Electricity - consumption:
2.8 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2001)

Oil - production:
438,500 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
74,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

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

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

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

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

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

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

Agriculture - products:
grain, fruits, vegetables, pulses, qat (mildly narcotic shrub), coffee, cotton; dairy products, livestock (sheep, goats, cattle, camels), poultry; fish

Exports:
$3.92 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities:
crude oil, coffee, dried and salted fish

Exports - partners:
Thailand 19%, India 16.7%, China 15.3%, South Korea 12.4%, Malaysia 6.1%, US 5.4% (2002)

Imports:
$3.042 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities:
food and live animals, machinery and equipment, chemicals

Imports - partners:
UAE 16%, Saudi Arabia 12.7%, China 6.2%, Kuwait 5.5%, US 4.7% (2002)

Debt - external:
$6.9 billion (2003)

Economic aid - recipient:
$2.3 billion (to be disbursed 2003-07)

Currency:
Yemeni rial (YER)

Currency code:
YER

Exchange rates:
Yemeni rials per US dollar - NA (2003), 175.63 (2002), 168.67 (2001), 161.72 (2000), 155.72 (1999)