Overview: Economic progress in the West Bank has been hampered by Israeli military occupation. Industries using advanced technology or requiring sizable financial resources have been discouraged by a lack of financial resources and Israeli policy. Capital investment has largely gone into residential housing, not into productive assets that could compete with Israeli industry. A major share of GNP is derived from remittances of workers employed in Israel and neighboring Gulf states. Israeli reprisals against Palestinian unrest in the West Bank since 1987 have pushed unemployment up and lowered living standards.

GNP: $1.5 billion, per capita $1,550; real growth rate 9% (1986)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): NA%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Budget: revenues $47.4 million; expenditures $45.7 million, including capital expenditures of NA (FY86)

Exports: $238.6 million (f.o.b., 1986); @m5commodities--NA; @m5partners--Jordan, Israel

Imports: $512.0 million (c.i.f., 1986); @m5commodities--NA @m5partners--Jordan, Israel

External debt: $NA

Industrial production: growth rate NA%

Electricity: NA kWh capacity; power supplied by Israel (1988)

Industries: generally small family businesses that produce cement, textiles, soap, olive-wood carvings, and mother-of-pearl souvenirs; the Israelis have established some small-scale modern industries in the settlements and industrial centers

Agriculture: olives, citrus and other fruits, vegetables, beef, and dairy products

Aid: NA

Currency: new Israeli shekel (plural--shekels) and Jordanian dinar (plural--dinars); 1 new Israeli shekel (NIS) = 100 new agorot and 1 Jordanian dinar (JD) = 1,000 fils

Exchange rates: new Israeli shekels (NIS) per US$1--1.8157 (January 1989), 1.5992 (1988), 1.5946 (1987), 1.4878 (1986), 1.1788 (1985); Jordanian dinars (JD) per US$1--0.4857 (January 1989), 0.3715 (1988), 0.3387 (1987), 0.3499 (1986), 0.3940 (1985)

Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March

NOTE: The information regarding West Bank on this page is re-published from the 1989 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of West Bank Economy 1989 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about West Bank Economy 1989 should be addressed to the CIA.