Economy - overview:
Despite being the smallest country geographically in Central America, El Salvador has the third largest economy in the region. The economy took a hit from the global recession and real GDP contracted by 3.5% in 2009. The economy began a slow recovery in 2010 on the back of improved export and remittances figures. Remittances accounted for 16% of GDP in 2009, and about a third of all households receive these transfers. In 2006 El Salvador was the first country to ratify the Dominican Republic-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), which has bolstered the export of processed foods, sugar, and ethanol, and supported investment in the apparel sector amid increased Asian competition and the expiration of the Multi-Fiber Agreement in 2005. El Salvador has promoted an open trade and investment environment, and has embarked on a wave of privatizations extending to telecom, electricity distribution, banking, and pension funds. In late 2006, the government and the Millennium Challenge Corporation signed a five-year, $461 million compact to stimulate economic growth and reduce poverty in the country's northern region, the primary conflict zone during the civil war, through investments in education, public services, enterprise development, and transportation infrastructure. With the adoption of the US dollar as its currency in 2001, El Salvador lost control over monetary policy. Any counter-cyclical policy response to the downturn must be through fiscal policy, which is constrained by legislative requirements for a two-thirds majority to approve any international financing.
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: Public debt: Inflation rate (consumer prices): 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: Oil - proved reserves: 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: The information regarding El Salvador on this page is re-published from the 2011 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of El Salvador Economy 2011 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about El Salvador Economy 2011 should be addressed to the CIA.
$43.98 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 94
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP (purchasing power parity) country ranks ]
$21.8 billion (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
1.2% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 174
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$7,300 (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 130
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 11%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
29.1%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - industry country ranks ]
services:
59.9% (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - services country ranks ]
2.94 million (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 104
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 19%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
23%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services:
58% (2006 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]
7% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 72
note:
data are official rates; but the economy has much underemployment
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
30.7% (2006 est.)
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: 1%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%:
37% (2005)
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - highest 10% country ranks ]
52.4 (2002)
country comparison to the world: 18
[see also: Distribution of family income - Gini index country ranks ]
13.7% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 140
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $3.894 billion
[see also: Budget - revenues country ranks ]
expenditures:
$4.915 billion (2009 est.)
[see also: Budget - expenditures country ranks ]
55% of GDP (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 45
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
0.8% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 16
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
12.33% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 121
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$2.534 billion (31 December 2010 est)
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$9.666 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$10.01 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 95
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$4.432 billion (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 83
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
coffee, sugar, corn, rice, beans, oilseed, cotton, sorghum; beef, dairy products
food processing, beverages, petroleum, chemicals, fertilizer, textiles, furniture, light metals
0.9% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 149
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
5.559 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 110
[see also: Electricity - production country ranks ]
4.676 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 111
[see also: Electricity - consumption country ranks ]
7 million kWh (2007 est.)
[see also: Electricity - exports country ranks ]
38 million kWh (2007 est.)
[see also: Electricity - imports country ranks ]
0 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 180
[see also: Oil - production country ranks ]
46,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 99
[see also: Oil - consumption country ranks ]
1,927 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 115
[see also: Oil - exports country ranks ]
46,310 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 88
[see also: Oil - imports country ranks ]
0 bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 185
[see also: Oil - proved reserves country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 177
[see also: Natural gas - production country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 190
[see also: Natural gas - consumption country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 62
[see also: Natural gas - exports country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 86
[see also: Natural gas - imports country ranks ]
0 cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 185
[see also: Natural gas - proved reserves country ranks ]
-$907 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 132
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$4.377 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 113
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
offshore assembly exports, coffee, sugar, textiles and apparel, gold, ethanol, chemicals, electricity, iron and steel manufactures
US 43.86%, Guatemala 13.92%, Honduras 13.22%, Nicaragua 5.65% (2009)
$7.98 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 100
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
raw materials, consumer goods, capital goods, fuels, foodstuffs, petroleum, electricity
US 29.79%, Mexico 10.26%, Guatemala 9.7%, China 4.5%, Honduras 4.4% (2009)
$2.819 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 86
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$11.45 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 87
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
$7.522 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 82
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - at home country ranks ]
$273 million (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 77
[see also: Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad country ranks ]
the US dollar became El Salvador's currency in 2001
This page was last modified 09-Feb-11