Africa > Congo, Republic of the > Economy

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Agriculture > products cassava, sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products
Budget > Revenues	$3,295,000,000.00		[106th of 166]
Source: CIA World Factbook, 28 July 2005
Consumer price index	112.83 %		[109th of 165]
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
Current account balance	-$1,491,000,000.00		[134th of 181]
Source: World Development Indicators database
Debt > External	$5,000,000,000.00		[7th of 136]
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
Economy > Overview The economy is a mixture of subsistence agriculture, an industrial sector based largely on oil, and support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. However, the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. In March 2006, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) treatment for Congo.
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
Exchange rates Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000)
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
Exports	$5,800,000,000.00		[94th of 189]
Source: CIA World Factbook, 28 July 2005
GDP	$7,385,169,000.00		[110th of 203]
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
GDP (purchasing power parity)	$12,860,000,000.00		[133rd of 187]
Source: World Development Indicators database and CIA World Factbook
GDP > PPP	$3,820,000,000.00		[145th of 163]
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
GDP > Real growth rate	-1.6%		[184th of 198]
Source: World Bank. 2005. World Development Indicators 2005.
GDP growth > annual %	9.2 annual %		[15th of 187]
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
GDP per capita, PPP > current international $	1,262.21 PPP $		[139th of 169]
Source: World Development Indicators database
Gross national income > constant LCU	213155400000
Source: World Development Indicators database
Human Development Index	0.512		[144th of 178]
Source: World Development Indicators database
Imports of goods, services and income > BoP, current US$	4,054,273,000 BoP $		[98th of 156]
Source: Human Development Report 2006, United Nations Development Programme
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	2.7%		[134th of 192]
Source: World Development Indicators database
Total reserves minus gold > current US$	731,829,800 $		[112nd of 178]
Source: All CIA World Factbooks 18 December 2003 to 18 December 2008
Tourist arrivals by region of origin > Europe	8,752		[164th of 195]
Source: World Development Indicators database

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