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Croatia vs. Slovenia

Economy

CroatiaSlovenia
Economy - overview

Though still one of the wealthiest of the former Yugoslav republics, Croatia's economy suffered badly during the 1991-95 war. The country's output during that time collapsed, and Croatia missed the early waves of investment in Central and Eastern Europe that followed the fall of the Berlin Wall. Between 2000 and 2007, however, Croatia's economic fortunes began to improve with moderate but steady GDP growth between 4% and 6%, led by a rebound in tourism and credit-driven consumer spending. Inflation over the same period remained tame and the currency, the kuna, stable.

Croatia experienced an abrupt slowdown in the economy in 2008; economic growth was stagnant or negative in each year between 2009 and 2014, but has picked up since the third quarter of 2014, ending 2017 with an average of 2.8% growth. Challenges remain including uneven regional development, a difficult investment climate, an inefficient judiciary, and loss of educated young professionals seeking higher salaries elsewhere in the EU. In 2016, Croatia revised its tax code to stimulate growth from domestic consumption and foreign investment. Income tax reduction began in 2017, and in 2018 various business costs were removed from income tax calculations. At the start of 2018, the government announced its economic reform plan, slated for implementation in 2019.

Tourism is one of the main pillars of the Croatian economy, comprising 19.6% of Croatia's GDP. Croatia is working to become a regional energy hub, and is undertaking plans to open a floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal by the end of 2019 or early in 2020 to import LNG for re-distribution in southeast Europe.

Croatia joined the EU on July 1, 2013, following a decade-long accession process. Croatia has developed a plan for Eurozone accession, and the government projects Croatia will adopt the Euro by 2024. In 2017, the Croatian government decreased public debt to 78% of GDP, from an all-time high of 84% in 2014, and realized a 0.8% budget surplus - the first surplus since independence in 1991. The government has also sought to accelerate privatization of non-strategic assets with mixed success. Croatia's economic recovery is still somewhat fragile; Croatia's largest private company narrowly avoided collapse in 2017, thanks to a capital infusion from an American investor. Restructuring is ongoing, and projected to finish by mid-July 2018.

With excellent infrastructure, a well-educated work force, and a strategic location between the Balkans and Western Europe, Slovenia has one of the highest per capita GDPs in Central Europe, despite having suffered a protracted recession in the 2008-09 period in the wake of the global financial crisis. Slovenia became the first 2004 EU entrant to adopt the euro (on 1 January 2007) and has experienced a stable political and economic transition.

 

In March 2004, Slovenia became the first transition country to graduate from borrower status to donor partner at the World Bank. In 2007, Slovenia was invited to begin the process for joining the OECD; it became a member in 2012. From 2014 to 2016, export-led growth, fueled by demand in larger European markets, pushed annual GDP growth above 2.3%. Growth reached 5.0% in 2017 and is projected to near or reach 5% in 2018. What used to be stubbornly high unemployment fell below 5.5% in early 2018, driven by strong exports and increasing consumption that boosted labor demand. Continued fiscal consolidation through increased tax collection and social security contributions will likely result in a balanced government budget in 2019.

 

Prime Minister CERAR's government took office in September 2014, pledging to press ahead with commitments to privatize a select group of state-run companies, rationalize public spending, and further stabilize the banking sector. Efforts to privatize Slovenia's largely state-owned banking sector have largely stalled, however, amid concerns about an ongoing dispute over Yugoslav-era foreign currency deposits.

GDP (purchasing power parity)$116.339 billion (2019 est.)

$113.105 billion (2018 est.)

$110.016 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
$81.614 billion (2019 est.)

$79.095 billion (2018 est.)

$75.773 billion (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - real growth rate2.94% (2019 est.)

2.7% (2018 est.)

3.14% (2017 est.)
2.4% (2019 est.)

4.24% (2018 est.)

5.14% (2017 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)$28,602 (2019 est.)

$27,669 (2018 est.)

$26,674 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
$39,088 (2019 est.)

$38,139 (2018 est.)

$36,670 (2017 est.)

note: data are in 2010 dollars
GDP - composition by sectoragriculture: 3.7% (2017 est.)

industry: 26.2% (2017 est.)

services: 70.1% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 1.8% (2017 est.)

industry: 32.2% (2017 est.)

services: 65.9% (2017 est.)
Population below poverty line18.3% (2018 est.)12% (2018 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage sharelowest 10%: 2.7%

highest 10%: 23% (2015 est.)
lowest 10%: 3.8%

highest 10%: 20.1% (2016)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)0.7% (2019 est.)

1.4% (2018 est.)

1.1% (2017 est.)
1.6% (2019 est.)

1.7% (2018 est.)

1.4% (2017 est.)
Labor force1.656 million (2020 est.)885,000 (2020 est.)
Labor force - by occupationagriculture: 1.9%

industry: 27.3%

services: 70.8% (2017 est.)
agriculture: 5.5%

industry: 31.2%

services: 63.3% (2017 est.)
Unemployment rate8.07% (2019 est.)

9.86% (2018 est.)
7.64% (2019 est.)

8.25% (2018 est.)
Distribution of family income - Gini index30.4 (2017 est.)

32.1 (2014 est.)
24.2 (2017 est.)

24.5 (2015)
Budgetrevenues: 25.24 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 24.83 billion (2017 est.)
revenues: 21.07 billion (2017 est.)

expenditures: 21.06 billion (2017 est.)
Industrieschemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages, tourismferrous metallurgy and aluminum products, lead and zinc smelting; electronics (including military electronics), trucks, automobiles, electric power equipment, wood products, textiles, chemicals, machine tools
Industrial production growth rate1.2% (2017 est.)8.6% (2017 est.)
Agriculture - productsmaize, wheat, sugar beet, milk, barley, soybeans, potatoes, pork, grapes, sunflower seedmilk, maize, wheat, grapes, barley, potatoes, poultry, apples, beef, pork
Exports$36.28 billion (2019 est.)

$33.97 billion (2018 est.)

$32.75 billion (2017 est.)
$49.872 billion (2019 est.)

$48.001 billion (2018 est.)

$45.096 billion (2017 est.)
Exports - commoditiesrefined petroleum, packaged medicines, cars, medical cultures/vaccines, lumber (2019)packaged medicines, cars and vehicle parts, refined petroleum, electrical lighting/signaling equipment, electricity (2019)
Exports - partnersItaly 13%, Germany 13%, Slovenia 10%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 9%, Austria 6%, Serbia 5% (2019)Germany 18%, Italy 11%, Croatia 8%, Austria 7%, France 5%, Switzerland 5% (2019)
Imports$37.612 billion (2019 est.)

$35.367 billion (2018 est.)

$32.899 billion (2017 est.)
$45.489 billion (2019 est.)

$43.637 billion (2018 est.)

$40.625 billion (2017 est.)
Imports - commoditiescrude petroleum, cars, refined petroleum, packaged medicines, electricity (2019)packaged medicines, cars and vehicle parts, refined petroleum, delivery trucks, electricity (2019)
Imports - partnersItaly 14%, Germany 14%, Slovenia 11%, Hungary 7%, Austria 6% (2019)Germany 14%, Italy 12%, Austria 8%, Switzerland 8%, China 7% (2019)
Debt - external$48.263 billion (2019 est.)

$51.176 billion (2018 est.)
$48.656 billion (2019 est.)

$50.004 billion (2018 est.)
Exchange rateskuna (HRK) per US dollar -

6.2474 (2020 est.)

6.72075 (2019 est.)

6.48905 (2018 est.)

6.8583 (2014 est.)

5.7482 (2013 est.)
euros (EUR) per US dollar -

0.82771 (2020 est.)

0.90338 (2019 est.)

0.87789 (2018 est.)

0.885 (2014 est.)

0.7634 (2013 est.)
Fiscal yearcalendar yearcalendar year
Public debt77.8% of GDP (2017 est.)

82.3% of GDP (2016 est.)
73.6% of GDP (2017 est.)

78.6% of GDP (2016 est.)

note: defined by the EU's Maastricht Treaty as consolidated general government gross debt at nominal value, outstanding at the end of the year in the following categories of government liabilities: currency and deposits, securities other than shares excluding financial derivatives, and loans; general government sector comprises the central, state, local government, and social security funds
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold$18.82 billion (31 December 2017 est.)

$14.24 billion (31 December 2016 est.)
$889.9 million (31 December 2017 est.)

$853 million (31 December 2016 est.)
Current Account Balance$1.597 billion (2019 est.)

$1 billion (2018 est.)
$3.05 billion (2019 est.)

$3.17 billion (2018 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)$60.687 billion (2019 est.)$54.16 billion (2019 est.)
Credit ratingsFitch rating: BBB- (2019)

Moody's rating: Ba1 (2020)

Standard & Poors rating: BBB- (2019)
Fitch rating: A (2019)

Moody's rating: A3 (2020)

Standard & Poors rating: AA- (2019)
Ease of Doing Business Index scoresOverall score: 73.6 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 85.3 (2020)

Trading score: 100 (2020)

Enforcement score: 70.6 (2020)
Overall score: 76.5 (2020)

Starting a Business score: 93 (2020)

Trading score: 100 (2020)

Enforcement score: 54.8 (2020)
Taxes and other revenues46.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)43.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-)0.8% (of GDP) (2017 est.)0% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Unemployment, youth ages 15-24total: 16.6%

male: 14.5%

female: 19.8% (2019 est.)
total: 8.1%

male: 7.4%

female: 9.2% (2019 est.)
GDP - composition, by end usehousehold consumption: 57.3% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 19.5% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 20% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 0% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 51.1% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -48.8% (2017 est.)
household consumption: 52.6% (2017 est.)

government consumption: 18.2% (2017 est.)

investment in fixed capital: 18.4% (2017 est.)

investment in inventories: 1.1% (2017 est.)

exports of goods and services: 82.3% (2017 est.)

imports of goods and services: -72.6% (2017 est.)
Gross national saving25.3% of GDP (2019 est.)

25.3% of GDP (2018 est.)

25.3% of GDP (2017 est.)
26.5% of GDP (2019 est.)

27.2% of GDP (2018 est.)

26.5% of GDP (2017 est.)

Source: CIA Factbook