Central America and the Caribbean > British Virgin Islands > Economy

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Agriculture > products fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish
Budget > Expenditures	$180,400,000.00		[20th of 165]
Budget > Revenues	$204,700,000.00		[20th of 166]
Debt > External	$36,100,000.00		[5th of 136]
Economy > Overview The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 820,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 2005. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, made the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the US dollar as its currency since 1959.
Exchange rates	the US dollar is used
Exports	$25,300,000.00		[182nd of 189]
Exports > Commodities rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand
Exports to US	$6,300,000.00		[138th of 224]
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March
GDP	$320,000,000.00		[189th of 203]
GDP (official exchange rate)	$839,700,000.00		[4th of 192]
GDP (purchasing power parity)	$853,400,000.00		[9th of 187]
GDP > Real growth rate	1%		[153rd of 198]
Imports	$187,000,000.00		[165th of 185]
Imports from US	$17,400,000.00		[120th of 224]
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2%		[156th of 192]
Tourist arrivals by region of origin > Europe	49,952		[132nd of 195]
Trade balance with US	$11,100,000.00		[46th of 224]
Trade with US > US exports of textile, sewing machines	16		[142nd of 183]

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