Economy of Gibraltar

Economy - overview: Gibraltar benefits from an extensive shipping trade, offshore banking, and its position as an international conference center. The British military presence has been sharply reduced and now contributes about 11% to the local economy. The financial sector accounts for 20% of GDP; tourism (almost 6 million visitors in 1998), shipping services fees, and duties on consumer goods also generate revenue. In recent years, Gibraltar has seen major structural change from a public to a private sector economy, but changes in government spending still have a major impact on the level of employment.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $500 million (1997 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: NA%

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $17,500 (1997 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.5% (1998)

Labor force: 14,800 (including non-Gibraltar laborers)

Labor force - by occupation: services 60%, industry 40%, agriculture NEGL%

Unemployment rate: 13.5% (1996)

Budget:
revenues: $119.3 million
expenditures: $122.1 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY96/97)

Industries: tourism, banking and finance, ship-building and repairing; support to large UK naval and air bases; tobacco, mineral water, beer, canned fish

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity - production: 90 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1998)

Electricity - consumption: 84 million kWh (1998)

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)

Agriculture - products: none

Exports: $81.1 million (f.o.b., 1997)

Exports - commodities: (principally reexports) petroleum 51%, manufactured goods 41%, other 8%

Exports - partners: UK, Morocco, Portugal, Netherlands, Spain, US, Germany

Imports: $492 million (c.i.f., 1997)

Imports - commodities: fuels, manufactured goods, and foodstuffs

Imports - partners: UK, Spain, Japan, Netherlands

Debt - external: $NA

Economic aid - recipient: $NA

Currency: 1 Gibraltar pound = 100 pence

Exchange rates: Gibraltar pounds per US$1 - 0.6092 (January 2000), 0.6180 (1999), 0.6037 (1998), 0.6106 (1997), 0.6403 (1996), 0.6335 (1995); note - the Gibraltar pound is at par with the British pound

Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June

See also : Gibraltar