Economy - overview:
This modern private enterprise economy has capitalized on its central geographic location, highly developed transport network, and diversified industrial and commercial base. Industry is concentrated mainly in the populous Flemish area in the north. With few natural resources, Belgium must import substantial quantities of raw materials and export a large volume of manufactures, making its economy unusually dependent on the state of world markets. About three-quarters of its trade is with other EU countries. Public debt is about 100% of GDP, and the government has succeeded in balancing its budget. Belgium, together with 11 of its EU partners, began circulating euro currency in January 2002. Economic growth in 2001-02 dropped sharply due to the global economic slowdown. Prospects for 2003 again depend largely on recovery in the EU and the US.
GDP:
purchasing power parity - $297.6 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
0.6% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $29,000 (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 1.3%
industry: 24.4%
services: 74.3% (2001)
Population below poverty line:
4%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.2%
highest 10%: 23% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
28.7 (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
1.7% (2002 est.)
Labor force:
4.44 million (2001)
Labor force - by occupation:
services 73%, industry 25%, agriculture 2% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate:
7.2% (2002 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $113.4 billion
expenditures: $106 billion, including capital expenditures of $7.17 billion (2000)
Industries:
engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum, coal
Industrial production growth rate:
4.5% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production:
74.28 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 38.4%
hydro: 0.6%
other: 1.7% (2001)
nuclear: 59.3%
Electricity - consumption:
78.18 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports:
6.712 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports:
15.82 billion kWh (2001)
Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption:
595,100 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports:
450,000 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports:
1.042 million bbl/day (2001)
Agriculture - products:
sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco; beef, veal, pork, milk
Exports:
$162 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs
Exports - partners:
EU 73.3% (Germany 18.9%, France 16.3%, Netherlands 11.7%, UK 9.8%), US 7.7% (2002)
Imports:
$152 billion f.o.b. (2001)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals and metal products, foodstuffs
Imports - partners:
EU 71.4% (Germany 17.4%, Netherlands 15.6%, France 12.6%, UK 7.2%), US 6.3% (2002)
Debt - external:
$28.3 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - donor:
ODA, $764 million (1997)
Currency:
euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Currency code:
EUR
Exchange rates:
euros per US dollar - 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999), 36.2986 (1998)
Fiscal year:
calendar year
NOTE: The information regarding Belgium on this page is re-published from the 2003 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Guinea Geography 2003 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Belgium Economy 2003 should be addressed to the CIA.
