Sri-lanka Economy—overview: At independence in 1948 plantations growing tea rubber or coconuts and paddies growing rice for subsistence dominated Sri Lanka's economy and as late as 1970 plantation crops accounted for 93% of exports. In 1977 Colombo abandoned statist economic policies and its import substitution trade policy for market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most dynamic industries now are food processing textiles and apparel food and beverages telecommunications and insurance and banking. By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP grew at an annual average rate of 5.5% throughout the 1990s until a drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to 3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in second half 1996 however and continued to perform well in 1997 with growth of 6%. Sustained economic growth coupled with population growth of only 1.1% has pushed Sri Lanka from the ranks of the poorest countries in the world up to the threshold of the middle income countries. For the next round of reforms the central bank of Sri Lanka recommends that Colombo expand market mechanisms in nonplantation agriculture dismantle the government's monopoly on wheat imports and promote more competition in the financial sector. A continuing cloud over the economy is the fighting between the Sinhalese and the minority Tamils which has cost 50 000 lives in the past 14 years. GDP: purchasing power parity—$72.1 billion (1997 est.) GDP—real growth rate: 6% (1997 est.) GDP—per capita: purchasing power parity—$3 800 (1997 est.) GDP—composition by sector: agriculture: 18.4% industry: 18% services: 63.6% (1996) Inflation rate—consumer price index: 9.6% (1997) Labor force: total: 6.2 million (1997) by occupation: services 46% agriculture 37% industry 17% (1997 est.) Unemployment rate: 11% (1997 est.) Budget: revenues: $3 billion expenditures: $4.2 billion including capital expenditures of $1 billion (1997 est.) Industries: processing of rubber tea coconuts and other agricultural commodities; clothing cement petroleum refining textiles tobacco Industrial production growth rate: 6.5% (1996 est.) Electricity—capacity: 1.557 million kW (1997 est.) Electricity—production: 4.86 billion kWh (1997 est.) Electricity—consumption per capita: 220 kWh (1997 est.) Agriculture—products: rice sugarcane grains pulses oilseed roots spices tea rubber coconuts; milk eggs hides meat Exports: total value: $4.1 billion (f.o.b. 1996) commodities: textiles and apparel tea diamonds and other gems rubber products petroleum products (1995) partners: US 34% UK 9.5% Japan 6.2% Germany 5.8% Belgium-Luxembourg 5.3% (1996) Imports: total value: $5.4 billion (c.i.f. 1996) commodities: machinery and equipment textiles transport equipment petroleum building materials sugar wheat (1996) partners: India 10.4% Japan 9.1% South Korea 6.5% Hong Kong 6.5% Taiwan 5.3% (1996) Debt—external: $9.4 billion (1996) Economic aid: recipient: ODA $620 million (1996 est.) Currency: 1 Sri Lankan rupee (SLRe) = 100 cents Exchange rates: Sri Lankan rupees (SLRes) per US$1—61.479 (January 1998) 58.995 (1997) 55.271 (1996) 51.252 (1995) 49.415 (1994) 48.322 (1993) Fiscal year: calendar year
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