Paraguay

Economy - overview: Paraguay has a market economy marked by a large informal sector. The informal sector features both reexport of imported consumer goods (electronics, whiskeys, perfumes, cigarettes, and office equipment) to neighboring countries as well as by the activities of thousands of microenterprises and urban street vendors. The formal sector is largely oriented toward services, but a large percentage of the population derive their living from agricultural activity, often on a subsistence basis. The formal economy has grown an average of 3% to 4% over the past five years. However, population has increased at 3% a year over the same period, leaving per capita income nearly stagnant. The WASMOSY government has continued to pursue its economic reform agenda - with mixed success - in close coordination with its partners in Mercosur (Southern Cone Common Market). Paraguay's ongoing integration into Mercosur offers potential for investment and growth. Although GDP grew by only about 1.5% in 1996, it is expected to grow at a higher rate in 1997. GDP: purchasing power parity - $17.7 billion (1996 est.) GDP - real growth rate: 1.5% (1996 est.) GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $3,200 (1996 est.) GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 26.3% industry: 20.7% services: 53% (1995) Inflation rate - consumer price index: 8.2% (December 1996) Labor force: total: 1.8 million (1995 est.) by occupation: agriculture 45% Unemployment rate: 5.3% (urban) (1995) Budget: revenues : $1.25 billion (1995 est.) expenditures: $1.66 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1995 est.) Industries: meat packing, oilseed crushing, milling, brewing, textiles, other light consumer goods, cement, construction Industrial production growth rate: 1.3% (1995 est.) Electricity - capacity: 6,927,500 kW (1995) Electricity - production: 41.625 billion kWh (1995) note: exported about 37.9 million kW of electricity Electricity - consumption per capita: 616 kWh (1995 est.) Agriculture - products: cotton, sugarcane, soybeans, corn, wheat, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), fruits, vegetables; beef, pork, eggs, milk; timber Exports: total value: $819.5 million (f.o.b., 1995) commodities: cotton, soybeans, timber, vegetable oils, meat products, coffee, tung oil partners: EU 37%, Brazil 25%, Argentina 10%, Chile 6%, US 6% Imports: total value: $2.871 billion (c.i.f., 1995) commodities: capital goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, raw materials, fuels partners : Brazil 30%, EU 20%, US 18%, Argentina 8%, Japan 7% Debt - external: $1.3 billion (1996) Economic aid: recipient: ODA, $38 million (1993) Currency: 1 guarani (G) = 100 centimos Exchange rates: guaranies (G) per US$ - 2,139.1 (January 1997), 2,063.8 (1996), 1,970.4 (1995), 1,911.5 (1994), 1,744.3 (1993), 1,500.3 (1992) Fiscal year: calendar year