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Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) Economy Stats

Overview:

The economy was formerly based on agriculture, mainly sheep farming, but today fishing contributes the bulk of economic activity. In 1987, the government began selling fishing licenses to foreign trawlers operating within the Falkland Islands' exclusive fishing zone. These license fees total more than $40 million per year, which help support the island's health, education, and welfare system. Squid accounts for 75% of the fish taken. Dairy farming supports domestic consumption; crops furnish winter fodder. Foreign exchange earnings come from shipments of high-grade wool to the UK and the sale of postage stamps and coins. The islands are now self-financing except for defense. The British Geological Survey announced a 200-mile oil exploration zone around the islands in 1993, and early seismic surveys suggest substantial reserves capable of producing 500,000 barrels per day; to date, no exploitable site has been identified. An agreement between Argentina and the UK in 1995 seeks to defuse licensing and sovereignty conflicts that would dampen foreign interest in exploiting potential oil reserves. Political tensions between the UK and Argentina rose in early 2010 after a UK company began oil drilling activities in the waters around the Falkland Islands but abated somewhat when the drilling operation failed to discover commercially exploitable oil reserves. Tourism, especially eco-tourism, is increasing rapidly, with about 30,000 visitors in 2001. Another large source of income is interest paid on money the government has in the bank. The British military presence also provides a sizeable economic boost.

Definitions

  • Budget > Expenditures: Expenditures calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms
  • Budget > Revenues: Revenues calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms
  • Budget surplus > + or deficit > -: This entry records the difference between national government revenues and expenditures, expressed as a percent of GDP. A positive (+) number indicates that revenues exceeded expenditures (a budget surplus), while a negative (-) number indicates the reverse (a budget deficit). Normalizing the data, by dividing the budget balance by GDP, enables easy comparisons across countries and indicates whether a national government saves or borrows money. Countries with high budget deficits (relative to their GDPs) generally have more difficulty raising funds to finance expenditures, than those with lower deficits.
  • Exports: This entry provides the total US dollar amount of merchandise exports on an f.o.b. (free on board) basis. These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.
  • Exports > Commodities: This entry provides a listing of the highest-valued exported products; it sometimes includes the percent of total dollar value.
  • Fiscal year: The beginning and ending months for a country's accounting period of 12 months, which often is the calendar year but which may begin in any month. All yearly references are for the calendar year (CY) unless indicated as a noncalendar fiscal year (FY).
  • GDP > Composition by sector > Agriculture: The gross domestic product (GDP) or value of all final goods produced by the agricultural sector within a nation in a given year. GDP dollar estimates in the Factbook are derived from purchasing power parity (PPP) calculations. See the CIA World Factbook for more information.
  • GDP > Per capita > PPP: This entry shows GDP on a purchasing power parity basis divided by population as of 1 July for the same year.
  • GDP > Purchasing power parity: This entry gives the gross domestic product (GDP) or value of all final goods and services produced within a nation in a given year. A nation's GDP at purchasing power parity (PPP) exchange rates is the sum value of all goods and services produced in the country valued at prices prevailing in the United States. This is the measure most economists prefer when looking at per-capita welfare and when comparing living conditions or use of resources across countries. The measure is difficult to compute, as a US dollar value has to be assigned to all goods and services in the country regardless of whether these goods and services have a direct equivalent in the United States (for example, the value of an ox-cart or non-US military equipment); as a result, PPP estimates for some countries are based on a small and sometimes different set of goods and services. In addition, many countries do not formally participate in the World Bank's PPP project that calculates these measures, so the resulting GDP estimates for these countries may lack precision. For many developing countries, PPP-based GDP measures are multiples of the official exchange rate (OER) measure. The difference between the OER- and PPP-denominated GDP values for most of the weathly industrialized countries are generally much smaller.
  • Imports: This entry provides the total US dollar amount of merchandise imports on a c.i.f. (cost, insurance, and freight) or f.o.b. (free on board) basis. These figures are calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms.
  • Industries: A rank ordering of industries starting with the largest by value of annual output.
  • Inflation rate > Consumer prices: This entry furnishes the annual percent change in consumer prices compared with the previous year's consumer prices.
  • Labor force: This entry contains the total labor force figure.
  • Unemployment rate: This entry contains the percent of the labor force that is without jobs. Substantial underemployment might be noted.
STAT AMOUNT DATE RANK HISTORY
Agriculture > Products fodder and vegetable crops; venison, sheep, dairy products; fish, squid 2013
Budget > Expenditures $75.30 million 2010 1st out of 1
Budget > Revenues $67.10 million 2013 213th out of 223
Budget surplus > + or deficit > - -5% of GDP 2010 1st out of 2
Exports $125.00 million 2004 4th out of 14
Exports > Commodities wool, hides, meat, venison, fish, squid 2013
Fiscal year 1 2013
GDP > Composition by sector > Agriculture 95% 2012 1st out of 218
GDP > Per capita > PPP $55,400.00 2002 1st out of 4
GDP > Purchasing power parity $164.50 million 2007 9th out of 9
Imports $90.00 million 2004 9th out of 15
Industries fish and wool processing; tourism 2013
Inflation rate > Consumer prices 1.2% 2003 3rd out of 3
Labor force 5 2013 152nd out of 230
Unemployment rate 4.1% 2010 102nd out of 119

SOURCES: CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 28 March 2011; CIA World Factbooks 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013; All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008; CIA World Factbook 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013

Citation

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) Economy Profiles (Subcategories)

Currency 3 Natural gas 7
Electricity 8 Oil 5
GDP 4 Trade 48
Government 5

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