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Republic of the Congo vs. Angola

Economy

Republic of the CongoAngola
Economy - overview

The Republic of the Congo's economy is a mixture of subsistence farming, an industrial sector based largely on oil and support services, and government spending. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. Natural gas is increasingly being converted to electricity rather than being flared, greatly improving energy prospects. New mining projects, particularly iron ore, which entered production in late 2013, may add as much as $1 billion to annual government revenue. The Republic of the Congo is a member of the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) and shares a common currency - the Central African Franc - with five other member states in the region.

The current administration faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. The drop in oil prices that began in 2014 has constrained government spending; lower oil prices forced the government to cut more than $1 billion in planned spending. The fiscal deficit amounted to 11% of GDP in 2017. The government's inability to pay civil servant salaries has resulted in multiple rounds of strikes by many groups, including doctors, nurses, and teachers. In the wake of a multi-year recession, the country reached out to the IMF in 2017 for a new program; the IMF noted that the country's continued dependence on oil, unsustainable debt, and significant governance weakness are key impediments to the country's economy. In 2018, the country's external debt level will approach 120% of GDP. The IMF urged the government to renegotiate debts levels to sustainable levels before it agreed to a new macroeconomic adjustment package.

Angola's economy is overwhelmingly driven by its oil sector. Oil production and its supporting activities contribute about 50% of GDP, more than 70% of government revenue, and more than 90% of the country's exports; Angola is an OPEC member and subject to its direction regarding oil production levels. Diamonds contribute an additional 5% to exports. Subsistence agriculture provides the main livelihood for most of the people, but half of the country's food is still imported.

Increased oil production supported growth averaging more than 17% per year from 2004 to 2008. A postwar reconstruction boom and resettlement of displaced persons led to high rates of growth in construction and agriculture as well. Some of the country's infrastructure is still damaged or undeveloped from the 27-year-long civil war (1975-2002). However, the government since 2005 has used billions of dollars in credit from China, Brazil, Portugal, Germany, Spain, and the EU to help rebuild Angola's public infrastructure. Land mines left from the war still mar the countryside, and as a result, the national military, international partners, and private Angolan firms all continue to remove them.

The global recession that started in 2008 stalled Angola's economic growth and many construction projects stopped because Luanda accrued billions in arrears to foreign construction companies when government revenue fell. Lower prices for oil and diamonds also resulted in GDP falling 0.7% in 2016. Angola formally abandoned its currency peg in 2009 but reinstituted it in April 2016 and maintains an overvalued exchange rate. In late 2016, Angola lost the last of its correspondent relationships with foreign banks, further exacerbating hard currency problems. Since 2013 the central bank has consistently spent down reserves to defend the kwanza, gradually allowing a 40% depreciation since late 2014. Consumer inflation declined from 325% in 2000 to less than 9% in 2014, before rising again to above 30% from 2015-2017.

Continued low oil prices, the depreciation of the kwanza, and slower than expected growth in non-oil GDP have reduced growth prospects, although several major international oil companies remain in Angola. Corruption, especially in the extractive sectors, is a major long-term challenge that poses an additional threat to the economy.

GDP (purchasing power parity)$19.763 billion (2019 est.)

$20.489 billion (2018 est.)

$21.844 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
$212.285 billion (2019 est.)

$213.619 billion (2018 est.)

$217.987 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - real growth rate-3.1% (2017 est.)

-2.8% (2016 est.)

2.6% (2015 est.)
-2.5% (2017 est.)

-2.6% (2016 est.)

0.9% (2015 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$3,673 (2019 est.)

$3,907 (2018 est.)

$4,274 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2017 dollars
$6,670 (2019 est.)

$6,934 (2018 est.)

$7,311 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - composition by sectoragriculture: 9.3% (2017 est.)

industry: 51% (2017 est.)

services: 39.7% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 10.2% (2011 est.)

industry: 61.4% (2011 est.)

services: 28.4% (2011 est.)
Population below poverty line40.9% (2011 est.)32.3% (2018 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage sharelowest 10%: 2.1%

highest 10%: 37.1% (2005)
lowest 10%: 0.6%

highest 10%: 44.7% (2000)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)2.2% (2019 est.)

1.1% (2018 est.)

0.4% (2017 est.)
17.2% (2019 est.)

20.3% (2018 est.)

32.1% (2017 est.)
Labor force2.055 million (2016 est.)12.51 million (2017 est.)
Labor force - by occupationagriculture: 35.4%

industry: 20.6%

services: 44% (2005 est.)
agriculture: 85%

industry: 15% (2015 est.)

industry and services: 15% (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate36% (2014 est.)6.6% (2016 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index48.9 (2011 est.)51.3 (2018 est.)
Budgetrevenues: 1.965 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 2.578 billion (2017 est.)
revenues: 37.02 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 45.44 billion (2017 est.)
Industriespetroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettespetroleum; diamonds, iron ore, phosphates, feldspar, bauxite, uranium, and gold; cement; basic metal products; fish processing; food processing, brewing, tobacco products, sugar; textiles; ship repair
Industrial production growth rate-3% (2017 est.)2.5% (2017 est.)
Agriculture - productscassava, sugar cane, oil palm fruit, cassava leaves, bananas, plantains, roots/tubers, game meat, vegetables, mangoes/guavascassava, bananas, maize, sweet potatoes, pineapples, sugar cane, potatoes, citrus fruit, vegetables, cabbage
Exports$4.193 billion (2017 est.)

$4.116 billion (2016 est.)
$33.07 billion (2017 est.)

$31.03 billion (2016 est.)
Exports - commoditiescrude petroleum, copper, lumber, ships, refined petroleum (2019)crude petroleum, diamonds, natural gas, refined petroleum, ships (2019)
Exports - partnersChina 49%, United Arab Emirates 15%, India 6%, Italy 5% (2019)China 62%, India 10%, United Arab Emirates 4%, Portugal 3%, Spain 3% (2019)
Imports$2.501 billion (2017 est.)

$5.639 billion (2016 est.)
$19.5 billion (2017 est.)

$13.04 billion (2016 est.)
Imports - commoditiesships, chicken products, refined petroleum, processed fish, packaged medicines (2019)refined petroleum, scrap vessels, meat, rice, palm oil (2019)
Imports - partnersChina 15%, France 12%, Belgium 6%, Angola 5% (2019)China 22%, Portugal 15%, Nigeria 6%, Belgium 6%, United States 5%, South Africa 5%, Brazil 5% (2019)
Debt - external$4.605 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$4.721 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$42.08 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$27.14 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Exchange ratesCooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar -

579.8 (2017 est.)

593.01 (2016 est.)

593.01 (2015 est.)

591.45 (2014 est.)

494.42 (2013 est.)
kwanza (AOA) per US dollar -

172.6 (2017 est.)

163.656 (2016 est.)

163.656 (2015 est.)

120.061 (2014 est.)

98.303 (2013 est.)
Fiscal yearcalendar yearcalendar year
Public debt130.8% of GDP (2017 est.)

128.7% of GDP (2016 est.)
65% of GDP (2017 est.)

75.3% of GDP (2016 est.)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$505.7 million (31 December 2017 est.)

$727.1 million (31 December 2016 est.)
$17.29 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$23.74 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
Current Account Balance-$1.128 billion (2017 est.)

-$5.735 billion (2016 est.)
-$1.254 billion (2017 est.)

-$4.834 billion (2016 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)$8.718 billion (2017 est.)$97.261 billion (2019 est.)
Credit ratingsFitch rating: CCC (2019)

Moody's rating: Caa2 (2018)

Standard & Poors rating: CCC+ (2020)
Fitch rating: CCC (2020)

Moody's rating: Caa1 (2020)

Standard & Poors rating: CCC+ (2020)
Ease of Doing Business Index scoresOverall score: 39.5 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 65.8 (2020)

Trading score: 19.7 (2020)

Enforcement score: 44 (2020)
Overall score: 41.3 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 79.4 (2020)

Trading score: 36.2 (2020)

Enforcement score: 28.1 (2020)
Taxes and other revenues22.5% (of GDP) (2017 est.)29.3% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)-7% (of GDP) (2017 est.)-6.7% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
GDP - composition, by end usehousehold consumption: 47.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 9.6% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 42.5% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 0.1% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 62.9% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -62.7% (2017 est.)
household consumption: 80.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 15.6% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 10.3% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: -1.2% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 25.4% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -30.7% (2017 est.)
Gross national saving19.5% of GDP (2017 est.)

-12.8% of GDP (2016 est.)

6.6% of GDP (2015 est.)
23.3% of GDP (2019 est.)

25.2% of GDP (2018 est.)

23.4% of GDP (2017 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook