Economy - overview:
This modern, open, and private-enterprise-based economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the more heavily-populated region of Flanders in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium imports substantial quantities of raw materials and exports a large volume of manufactures, making its economy vulnerable to volatility in world markets. Roughly three-quarters of Belgium's trade is with other EU countries, and Belgium has benefited most from its proximity to Germany. In 2011 Belgian GDP grew by 2.04%, the unemployment rate decreased slightly to 7.7% from 8.3% the previous year, and the government reduced the budget deficit from a peak of 6% of GDP in 2009 to 4.2% in 2011. Despite the relative improvement in Belgium's budget deficit, public debt hovers near 100% of GDP, a factor that has contributed to investor perceptions that the country is increasingly vulnerable to spillover from the euro-zone crisis. Belgian banks were severely affected by the international financial crisis in 2008 with three major banks receiving capital injections from the government, and the nationalization of the Belgian arm of a Franco-Belgian bank. An ageing population and rising social expenditures are mid- to long-term challenges to public finances.
GDP (purchasing power parity): GDP (official exchange rate): GDP - real growth rate: GDP - per capita (PPP): GDP - composition by sector: Labor force: Labor force - by occupation: Unemployment rate: Population below poverty line: Household income or consumption by percentage share: Distribution of family income - Gini index: Investment (gross fixed): Budget: Taxes and other revenues: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-): Public debt: Inflation rate (consumer prices): Central bank discount rate: Commercial bank prime lending rate: Stock of narrow money: Stock of broad money: Stock of domestic credit: Market value of publicly traded shares: Agriculture - products: Industries: Industrial production growth rate: Electricity - production: Electricity - consumption: Electricity - exports: Electricity - imports: Oil - production: Oil - consumption: Oil - exports: Oil - imports: Natural gas - production: Natural gas - consumption: Natural gas - exports: Natural gas - imports: Natural gas - proved reserves: Current account balance: Exports: Exports - commodities: Exports - partners: Imports: Imports - commodities: Imports - partners: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: Debt - external: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: Exchange rates:
NOTE: 1) The information regarding Belgium on this page is re-published from the 2012 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Belgium Economy 2012 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Belgium Economy 2012 should be addressed to the CIA.
$412 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
note: data are in 2011 US dollars
[see also: GDP country ranks ]
$529 billion (2011 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
2% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 151
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$37,600 (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 29
note: data are in 2011 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 0.7%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry: 21.6%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - industry country ranks ]
services: 77.7% (2011 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - services country ranks ]
5.071 million (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 72
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 2%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry: 25%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services: 73% (2007 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]
7.7% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 90
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
15.2% (2007 est.)
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: 3.4%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%: 28.4% (2006)
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - highest 10% country ranks ]
28 (2005)
country comparison to the world: 126
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]
19.8% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 121
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $253.3 billion
[see also: Budget revenues country ranks ]
expenditures: $275.5 billion (2011 est.)
[see also: Budget expenditures country ranks ]
47.9% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 21
[see also: Taxes and other revenues country ranks ]
-4.2% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 129
[see also: Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) country ranks ]
99.7% of GDP (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
note: data cover general Government Debt, and includes debt instruments issued (or owned) by Government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment. Debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions.
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
3.1% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 53
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
1.75% (31 December 2010)
country comparison to the world: 121
note: this is the European Central Bank's rate on the marginal lending facility, which offers overnight credit to banks in the euro area
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
4.4% (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 172
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$186.8 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 21
note: see entry for the European Union for money supply in the euro area; the European Central Bank (ECB) controls monetary policy for the 17 members of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU); individual members of the EMU do not control the quantity of money circulating within their own borders
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$604 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 21
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$801.1 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$269.3 billion (31 December 2010)
country comparison to the world: 25
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk
engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum
6.1% (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 51
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
84.2 billion kWh (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 35
[see also: Electricity - production country ranks ]
84.78 billion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 34
[see also: Electricity - consumption country ranks ]
11.32 billion kWh (2009 est.)
[see also: Electricity - exports country ranks ]
1.837 billion kWh (2009 est.)
[see also: Electricity - imports country ranks ]
11,220 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 82
[see also: Oil - production country ranks ]
622,600 bbl/day (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 28
[see also: Oil - consumption country ranks ]
353,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
[see also: Oil - exports country ranks ]
1.007 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
[see also: Oil - imports country ranks ]
0 cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 154
[see also: Natural gas - production country ranks ]
19.53 billion cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
[see also: Natural gas - consumption country ranks ]
0 cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 59
[see also: Natural gas - exports country ranks ]
19.32 billion cu m (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
[see also: Natural gas - imports country ranks ]
0 cu m (1 January 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 111
[see also: Natural gas - proved reserves country ranks ]
$4.7 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$332 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
machinery and equipment, chemicals, finished diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs
Germany 19.1%, France 17%, Netherlands 12.2%, UK 7.2%, US 5.3%, Italy 4.7% (2010)
$332.4 billion (2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
raw materials, machinery and equipment, chemicals, raw diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products
Netherlands 19.1%, Germany 16.4%, France 11.3%, UK 5.4%, US 5.3%, Ireland 5.3%, China 4.1% (2010)
$26.81 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 53
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$1.399 trillion (30 June 2011)
country comparison to the world: 12
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
$983.9 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 6
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]
$813.9 billion (31 December 2011 est.)
country comparison to the world: 9
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]
euros (EUR) per US dollar -
2) The rank that you see is the CIA reported rank, which may habe the following issues:
a) They assign increasing rank number, alphabetically for countries with the same value of the ranked item, whereas we assign them the same rank.
b) The CIA sometimes assignes counterintuitive ranks. For example, it assigns unemployment rates in increasing order, whereas we rank them in decreasing order
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This page was last modified 07-Mar-12