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Economy - overview:
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With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency, El Salvador has lost control over monetary policy and must concentrate on maintaining a disciplined fiscal policy. GDP per capita is roughly only half that of Brazil, Argentina, and Chile, and the distribution of income is highly unequal. The trade deficit has been offset by annual remittances of almost $2 billion from Salvadorans living abroad and external aid. The government is striving to open new export markets, encourage foreign investment, modernize the tax and healthcare systems, and stimulate the sluggish economy.
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $30.99 billion (2004 est.)
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GDP - real growth rate:
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1.4% (2004 est.)
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $4,800 (2004 est.)
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 9.4%
industry: 31.2%
services: 59.3% (2004 est.)
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Investment (gross fixed):
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16.2% of GDP (2004 est.)
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Population below poverty line:
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48% (1999 est.)
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: 1.4%
highest 10%: 39.3% (2001)
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Distribution of family income - Gini index:
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52.2 (1998)
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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2.1% (2004 est.)
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Labor force:
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2.62 million (2004 est.)
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture 30%, industry 15%, services 55% (1999 est.)
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Unemployment rate:
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6.5% - but the economy has much underemployment (2004 est.)
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Budget:
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revenues: $2.434 billion
expenditures: $2.625 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)
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Public debt:
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43.7% of GDP (2004 est.)
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Agriculture - products:
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coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; shrimp; beef, dairy products
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Industries:
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food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals
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Industrial production growth rate:
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1.6% (2004 est.)
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Electricity - production:
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3.729 billion kWh (2001)
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Electricity - consumption:
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3.777 billion kWh (2001)
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Electricity - exports:
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44 million kWh (2001)
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Electricity - imports:
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353 million kWh (2001)
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Oil - production:
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0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil - consumption:
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39,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
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Oil - exports:
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NA (2001)
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Oil - imports:
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NA (2001)
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Current account balance:
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$-734 million (2004 est.)
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Exports:
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$3.162 billion (2004 est.)
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Exports - commodities:
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offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, shrimp, textiles, chemicals, electricity
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Exports - partners:
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US 67.8%, Guatemala 11.5%, Honduras 5.9% (2003)
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Imports:
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$5.466 billion (2003 est.)
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Imports - commodities:
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raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity
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Imports - partners:
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US 50%, Guatemala 8.1%, Mexico 5.5% (2003)
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Reserves of foreign exchange & gold:
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$2.061 billion (2004 est.)
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Debt - external:
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$6.575 billion (2004 est.)
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Economic aid - recipient:
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total $252 million; $57 million from US (1995)
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Currency:
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US dollar (USD)
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Currency code:
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USD
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Exchange rates:
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the US dollar is the legal tender
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year
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