Economy - overview:
Turkmenistan is largely a desert country with intensive agriculture in irrigated oases and sizeable gas and oil resources. One-half of its irrigated land is planted in cotton; formerly it was the world's 10th-largest producer. Poor harvests in recent years have led to an almost 50% decline in cotton exports. With an authoritarian ex-Communist regime in power and a tribally based social structure, Turkmenistan has taken a cautious approach to economic reform, hoping to use gas and cotton sales to sustain its inefficient economy. Privatization goals remain limited. From 1998-2005, Turkmenistan suffered from the continued lack of adequate export routes for natural gas and from obligations on extensive short-term external debt. At the same time, however, total exports rose by an average of roughly 15% per year from 2003-08, largely because of higher international oil and gas prices. A new pipeline to China, set to come online in late 2009 or early 2010, will give Turkmenistan an additional export route for its gas. Overall prospects in the near future are discouraging because of widespread internal poverty, a poor educational system, government misuse of oil and gas revenues, and Ashgabat's reluctance to adopt market-oriented reforms. In the past, Turkmenistan's economic statistics were state secrets. The new government has established a State Agency for Statistics, but GDP numbers and other figures are subject to wide margins of error. In particular, the rate of GDP growth is uncertain. Since his election, President BERDIMUHAMEDOW has sought to improve the health and education systems, unified the country's dual currency exchange rate, ordered the redenomination of the manat, reduced state subsidies for gasoline, increased internet access both in schools and internet cafes, ordered an independent audit of Turkmenistan's gas resources, and created a special tourism zone on the Caspian Sea. Although foreign investment is encouraged, numerous bureaucratic obstacles from the NYYZOW-era remain.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$29.65 billion (2008 est.)
$26.96 billion (2007)
$24.18 billion (2006)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars

GDP (official exchange rate):
$28.82 billion (2008 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
10% (2008 est.)
11.5% (2007 est.)
9% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita:
$6,100 (2008 est.)
$5,600 (2007 est.)
$5,100 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 10.7%
industry: 38.8%
services: 50.4% (2008 est.)

Labor force:
2.089 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 48.2%
industry: 14%
services: 37.8% (2004 est.)

Unemployment rate:
60% (2004 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.6%
highest 10%: 31.7% (1998)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
40.8 (1998)

Investment (gross fixed):
11.6% of GDP (2008 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $1.393 billion
expenditures: $1.42 billion (2008 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
18% (2008 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares:
$NA

Agriculture - products:
cotton, grain; livestock

Industries:
natural gas, oil, petroleum products, textiles, food processing

Industrial production growth rate:
-0.1% (2008 est.)

Electricity - production:
12.83 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - consumption:
9.584 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - exports:
1.34 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2007 est.)

Oil - production:
180,400 bbl/day (2007est.)

Oil - consumption:
107,400 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - exports:
40,000 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - imports:
5,283 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - proved reserves:
600 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)

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

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

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

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

Natural gas - proved reserves:
2.832 trillion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)

Current account balance:
$2.897 billion (2008 est.)

Exports:
$9.887 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)

Exports - commodities:
gas, crude oil, petrochemicals, textiles, cotton fiber

Exports - partners:
Ukraine 51.3%, Iran 18.5%, Turkey 5% (2007)

Imports:
$5.291 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs

Imports - partners:
UAE 14.3%, Russia 11.6%, Turkey 10.3%, China 9.1%, Ukraine 8.7%, Iran 7%, Germany 6.5%, US 5.6% (2007)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$5.501 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

Debt - external:
$1.4 billion
note: some estimates put this figure as high as $5 billion (2004 est.)