Economy - overview:
The economy is a mixture of village agriculture and handicrafts, an industrial sector based largely on oil, support services, and a government characterized by budget problems and overstaffing. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. In the early 1980s, rapidly rising oil revenues enabled the government to finance large-scale development projects with GDP growth averaging 5% annually, one of the highest rates in Africa. The government has mortgaged a substantial portion of its oil earnings through oil-backed loans that have contributed to a growing debt burden and chronic revenue shortfalls. Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF. However, the reform program came to a halt in June 1997 when civil war erupted. Denis SASSOU-NGUESSO, who returned to power when the war ended in October 1997, publicly expressed interest in moving forward on economic reforms and privatization and in renewing cooperation with international financial institutions. Economic progress was badly hurt by slumping oil prices and the resumption of armed conflict in December 1998, which worsened the republic's budget deficit. The current administration presides over an uneasy internal peace and faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. Recovery of oil prices has boosted the economy's GDP and near-term prospects. The Republic of Congo may be eligible for an IMF-World Bank heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative in early 2006, provided it meets the strict fiscal and monetary targets set out for it under a new three-year Poverty Reduction and Growth Facility (PRGF) with the IMF.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$2.616 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
$4.789 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
8% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
$700 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 6.7%
industry: 62.4%
services: 30.9% (2005 est.)

Labor force:
NA

Unemployment rate:
NA%

Population below poverty line:
NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
2% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
28.9% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $1.328 billion
expenditures: $1.065 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products:
cassava (tapioca), sugar, rice, corn, peanuts, vegetables, coffee, cocoa; forest products

Industries:
petroleum extraction, cement, lumber, brewing, sugar, palm oil, soap, flour, cigarettes

Industrial production growth rate:
0% (2002 est.)

Electricity - production:
343 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:
619 million kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
300 million kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
267,100 bbl/day (2005 est.)

Oil - consumption:
5,200 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day

Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day

Oil - proved reserves:
93.5 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m

Natural gas - imports:
0 cu m

Natural gas - proved reserves:
90.61 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance:
$195.6 million (2005 est.)

Exports:
$2.209 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities:
petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds

Exports - partners:
China 26.8%, Taiwan 19.2%, North Korea 8.4%, US 7.3%, France 5.5%, South Korea 4.8% (2004)

Imports:
$806.5 million f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - commodities:
capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs

Imports - partners:
France 32.7%, US 10.1%, Germany 6.2%, Italy 6%, China 5.2%, Netherlands 4.5% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$102.2 million (2005 est.)

Debt - external:
$5 billion (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
$159.1 million (1995)

Currency (code):
Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States

Exchange rates:
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 527.47 (2005), 528.29 (2004), 581.2 (2003), 696.99 (2002), 733.04 (2001)