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The Economy of Paraguay

Paraguayan Economy

Paraguay's map

Economy - overview: Landlocked Paraguay has a market economy marked by a large informal sector, featuring reexport of imported consumer goods to neighboring countries, as well as the activities of thousands of microenterprises and urban street vendors. A large percentage of the population, especially in rural areas, derives its living from agricultural activity, often on a subsistence basis. Because of the importance of the informal sector, accurate economic measures are difficult to obtain. On a per capita basis, real income has stagnated at 1980 levels. Most observers attribute Paraguay's poor economic performance to political uncertainty, corruption, limited progress on structural reform, and deficient infrastructure. The economy rebounded between 2003 and 2008, however, as growing world demand for commodities combined with high prices and favorable weather to support Paraguay's commodity-based export expansion. Paraguay is the sixth largest soy producer in the world.

GDP:

GDP - real growth rate: 5.5% (2008 est.) 6.4% (2007 est.) 4.3% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita:

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 23.1% industry: 17.2% services: 59.6% (2008 est.)

Population below poverty line:

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 0.7% highest 10%: 46.1% (2003)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 56.8 (2008)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

Labor force: 2.839 million (2008 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture: 31% industry: 17% services: 52% (2007)

Unemployment rate: 5.4% (2008 est.)

Budget: revenues: $2.939 billion expenditures: $2.866 billion (2008 est.)

Industries: sugar, cement, textiles, beverages, wood products, steel, metallurgic, electric power

Industrial production growth rate: 2.5% (2008 est.)

Electricity - production: 70 billion kWh (2007)

Electricity - production by source:

Electricity - consumption: 6 billion kWh (2007)

Electricity - exports: 64 billion kWh (2007)

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2007)

Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - consumption: 27,410 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - exports: 0 bbl/day (2007)

Oil - imports: 25,940 bbl/day (2007)

Oil - proved reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Natural gas - production: 0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - consumption: 0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - exports: 0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - imports: 0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves: 0 cu m (1 January 2007 est.)

Agriculture - products: cotton, sugarcane, soybeans, corn, wheat, tobacco, cassava (tapioca), fruits, vegetables; beef, pork, eggs, milk; timber

Exports: $6.901 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)

Exports - commodities: soybeans, feed, cotton, meat, edible oils, electricity, wood, leather

Exports - partners: Argentina 28.1%, Uruguay 15.2%, Brazil 12.7%, Chile 5.9%, Germany 4.9%, Russia 4.5% (2007)

Imports: $7.351 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)

Imports - commodities: road vehicles, consumer goods, tobacco, petroleum products, electrical machinery, tractors, chemicals, vehicle parts

Imports - partners: Brazil 30.4%, US 22.8%, Argentina 14.4%, China 8.6% (2007)

Debt - external: $3.487 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:

Currency:

Currency code:

Exchange rates: guarani (PYG) per US dollar - 4,337.7 (2008 est.), 5,031 (2007), 5,672.8 (2006), 6,178 (2005), 5,974.6 (2004)

Fiscal year: