| 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, although
the government is encouraging investment in the southern region of
Wallonia. 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. Belgium's
public debt is expected to fall below 100% of GDP in 2002, and the
government has succeeded in balancing is budget. Belgium became a charter
member of the European Monetary Union (EMU) in January 1999. Economic
growth in 2000 was broad based, putting the government in a good position
to pursue its energy market liberalization policies and planned tax cuts.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $259.2 billion (2000 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.1% (2000 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $25,300 (2000 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 26%
services: 72.6% (2000 est.)
Population below poverty line: 4%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.7%
highest 10%: 20.2% (1992)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.2% (2000 est.)
Labor force: 4.341 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: services 73%, industry 25%, agriculture 2% (1999
est.)
Unemployment rate: 8.4% (2000 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $114.8 billion
expenditures: $117 billion, including capital expenditures of
$7.6 billion (1999)
Industries: engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, processed
food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum, coal
Industrial production growth rate: 5.5% (2000 est.)
Electricity - production: 79.829 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 40.01%
hydro: 0.42%
nuclear: 58.33%
other: 1.24% (1999)
Electricity - consumption: 75.089 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - exports: 8.207 billion kWh (1999)
Electricity - imports: 9.055 billion kWh (1999)
Agriculture - products: sugar beets, fresh vegetables, fruits, grain, tobacco;
beef, veal, pork, milk
Exports: $181.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000)
Exports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, diamonds, metals and
metal products
Exports - partners: EU 76% (Germany 18%, France 18%, Netherlands
12%, UK 10%) (1999)
Imports: $166 billion (c.i.f., 2000)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, metals and metal
products
Imports - partners: EU 71% (Germany 18%, Netherlands 17%, France
14%, UK 9%) (1999)
Debt - external: $28.3 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $764 million (1997)
Currency: 1 Belgian franc (BF) = 100 centimes
SOURCE: The World Factbook |