Economy - overview:
Gabon enjoys a per capita income four times that of most sub-Saharan African nations, but because of high income inequality, a large proportion of the population remains poor. Gabon depended on timber and manganese until oil was discovered offshore in the early 1970s. The oil sector now accounts for more than 50% of GDP although the industry is in decline as fields pass their peak production. Gabon continues to face fluctuating prices for its oil, timber, and manganese exports and the global recession led to a GDP contraction of 1.4% in 2009. Despite the abundance of natural wealth, poor fiscal management hobbles the economy. In 1997, an IMF mission to Gabon criticized the government for overspending on off-budget items, overborrowing from the central bank, and slipping on its schedule for privatization and administrative reform. The rebound of oil prices from 1999 to 2008 helped growth, but drops in production have hampered Gabon from fully realizing potential gains. Gabon signed a 14-month Stand-By Arrangement with the IMF in May 2007, and later that year issued a $1 billion sovereign bond to buy back a sizable portion of its Paris Club debt.
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: Investment (gross fixed): Budget: 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: 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: Exchange rates:
NOTE: The information regarding Gabon 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 Gabon Economy 2011 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Gabon Economy 2011 should be addressed to the CIA.
$22.54 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 120
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP (purchasing power parity) country ranks ]
$12.56 billion (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP (official exchange rate) country ranks ]
5.4% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 46
[see also: GDP - real growth rate country ranks ]
$14,600 (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 79
note:
data are in 2010 US dollars
[see also: GDP - per capita country ranks ]
agriculture: 4.5%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
62.7%
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - industry country ranks ]
services:
32.8% (2009 est.)
[see also: GDP - composition by sector - services country ranks ]
712,000 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 148
[see also: Labor force country ranks ]
agriculture: 60%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - agriculture country ranks ]
industry:
15%
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - industry country ranks ]
services:
25% (2000 est.)
[see also: Labor force - by occupation - services country ranks ]
21% (2006 est.); NA%
country comparison to the world: 171
[see also: Unemployment rate country ranks ]
NA%
[see also: Population below poverty line country ranks ]
lowest 10%: 2.5%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10% country ranks ]
highest 10%:
32.7%
[see also: Household income or consumption by percentage share - highest 10% country ranks ]
28.8% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 22
[see also: Investment (gross fixed) country ranks ]
revenues: $3.557 billion
[see also: Budget - revenues country ranks ]
expenditures:
$2.945 billion (2009 est.)
[see also: Budget - expenditures country ranks ]
25.8% of GDP (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 94
[see also: Public debt country ranks ]
-1.3% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
[see also: Inflation rate (consumer prices) country ranks ]
4.25% (31 December 2009)
country comparison to the world: 99
[see also: Central bank discount rate country ranks ]
NA% (31 December 2009 est.)
[see also: Commercial bank prime lending rate country ranks ]
$1.835 billion (31 December 2010 est)
[see also: Stock of narrow money country ranks ]
$2.764 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
[see also: Stock of broad money country ranks ]
$1.074 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 149
[see also: Stock of domestic credit country ranks ]
$NA
[see also: Market value of publicly traded shares country ranks ]
cocoa, coffee, sugar, palm oil, rubber; cattle; okoume (a tropical softwood); fish
petroleum extraction and refining; manganese, gold; chemicals, ship repair, food and beverages, textiles, lumbering and plywood, cement
4.8% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 69
[see also: Industrial production growth rate country ranks ]
1.774 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 135
[see also: Electricity - production country ranks ]
1.446 billion kWh (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 141
[see also: Electricity - consumption country ranks ]
0 kWh (2008 est.)
[see also: Electricity - exports country ranks ]
0 kWh (2008 est.)
[see also: Electricity - imports country ranks ]
241,700 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 41
[see also: Oil - production country ranks ]
14,000 bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 140
[see also: Oil - consumption country ranks ]
227,300 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 51
[see also: Oil - exports country ranks ]
4,185 bbl/day (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 165
[see also: Oil - imports country ranks ]
2 billion bbl (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 36
[see also: Oil - proved reserves country ranks ]
90 million cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 80
[see also: Natural gas - production country ranks ]
90 million cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 104
[see also: Natural gas - consumption country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 177
[see also: Natural gas - exports country ranks ]
0 cu m (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 178
[see also: Natural gas - imports country ranks ]
28.32 billion cu m (1 January 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 73
[see also: Natural gas - proved reserves country ranks ]
$591 million (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 50
[see also: Current account balance country ranks ]
$6.803 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 100
[see also: Exports country ranks ]
crude oil 70%, timber, manganese, uranium
Russia 30.62%, US 16.56%, China 15.87%, France 4.28% (2009)
$2.433 billion (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 148
[see also: Imports country ranks ]
machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, construction materials
France 32.21%, US 7.92%, China 7.02%, Belgium 4.99%, Italy 4.81%, Cameroon 4.56%, Netherlands 4.35% (2009)
$2.602 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 89
[see also: Reserves of foreign exchange and gold country ranks ]
$2.374 billion (31 December 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 136
[see also: Debt - external country ranks ]
Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs per US dollar - 507.71 (2010), 472.19 (2009), 447.81 (2008), 481.83 (2007), 522.89 (2006)
This page was last modified 09-Feb-11