Cuba Economy Profile 2008

Economy - overview

The government continues to balance the need for economic loosening against a desire for firm political control. It has rolled back limited reforms undertaken in the 1990s to increase enterprise efficiency and alleviate serious shortages of food, consumer goods, and services. The average Cuban's standard of living remains at a lower level than before the downturn of the 1990s, which was caused by the loss of Soviet aid and domestic inefficiencies. Since late 2000, Venezuela has been providing oil on preferential terms, and it currently supplies about 100,000 barrels per day of petroleum products. Cuba has been paying for the oil, in part, with the services of Cuban personnel in Venezuela, including some 20,000 medical professionals. In 2007, high metals prices continued to boost Cuban earnings from nickel and cobalt production. Havana continued to invest in the country's energy sector to mitigate electrical blackouts that had plagued the country since 2004.

GDP (purchasing power parity)

$125.5 billion (2007 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$45.58 billion (2007 est.)

GDP - real growth rate

6.5% (2007 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP)

$11,000 (2007 est.)

GDP - composition by sector

agriculture: 5.2%
industry: 25%
services: 69.8% (2007 est.)

Population below poverty line

NA%

Labor force

4.956 million
note: state sector 78%, non-state sector 22% (2007 est.)

Labor force - by occupation

agriculture: 20%
industry: 19.4%
services: 60.6% (2005)

Unemployment rate

1.8% (2007 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share

lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Investment (gross fixed)

13.1% of GDP (2007 est.)

Budget

revenues: $41.84 billion
expenditures: $43.9 billion (2007 est.)

Public debt

36.8% of GDP (2007 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

3.1% (2007 est.)

Central bank discount rate

NA

Commercial bank prime lending rate

NA

Stock of money

NA

Stock of quasi money

NA

Stock of domestic credit

NA

Industries

sugar, petroleum, tobacco, construction, nickel, steel, cement, agricultural machinery, pharmaceuticals

Industrial production growth rate

2.5% (2007 est.)

Electricity - production

16.97 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - consumption

14.02 billion kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - exports

0 kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - imports

0 kWh (2007 est.)

Oil - production

61,300 bbl/day (2008 est.)

Oil - consumption

203,500 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - imports

123,200 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - exports

0 bbl/day (2006)

Oil - proved reserves

124 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)

Natural gas - production

1.058 billion cu m (2006)

Natural gas - consumption

1.058 billion cu m (2006)

Natural gas - exports

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - imports

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves

70.79 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)

Current Account Balance

$240 million (2007 est.)

Agriculture - products

sugar, tobacco, citrus, coffee, rice, potatoes, beans; livestock

Exports

$3.734 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities

sugar, nickel, tobacco, fish, medical products, citrus, coffee

Exports - partners

China 27.5%, Canada 26.9%, Netherlands 11.1%, Spain 4.7% (2007)

Imports

$10.08 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities

petroleum, food, machinery and equipment, chemicals

Imports - partners

Venezuela 29.6%, China 13.4%, Spain 10.4%, Canada 6%, US 5.1% (2007)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

$4.247 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external

$16.79 billion (convertible currency); another $15-20 billion owed to Russia (31 December 2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home

$11.24 billion (2006 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad

$4.138 billion (2006 est.)

Economic aid - recipient

$87.8 million (2005 est.)

Currency (code)

Cuban peso (CUP) and Convertible peso (CUC)

Exchange rates

Cuban pesos (CUP) per US dollar - 0.9259 (2007), 0.9231 (2006)
note: Cuba has two currencies in circulation: the Cuban peso (CUP) and the convertible peso (CUC); in April 2005 the official exchange rate changed from $1 per CUC to $1.08 per CUC (0.93 CUC per $1), both for individuals and enterprises; individuals can buy 24 Cuban pesos (CUP) for each CUC sold, or sell 25 Cuban pesos for each CUC bought; enterprises, however, must exchange CUP and CUC at a 1:1 ratio.

Fiscal year

calendar year