Republic of the Congo: Economy#
The economy is a mixture of subsistence farming and hunting, an industrial sector based largely on oil and support services, and government spending. Oil has supplanted forestry as the mainstay of the economy, providing a major share of government revenues and exports. Natural gas is increasingly being converted to electricity rather than being flared, greatly improving energy prospects. New mining projects, particularly iron ore, which entered production in late 2013, may add as much as $1 billion to annual government revenue.Economic reform efforts have been undertaken with the support of international organizations, notably the World Bank and the IMF, including the recently concluded Article IV consultations. The current administration faces difficult economic challenges of stimulating recovery and reducing poverty. The recent drop in oil prices has constrained government spending; lower oil prices forced the government to cut more than $1 billion in planned spending. However, the government increased infrastructure spending for the September 2015 All-Africa Games and also ahead of the March 2016 presidential election, putting further pressure on the budget.
Officially the country became a net external creditor as of 2011, with external debt representing only about 16% of GDP and debt servicing less than 3% of government revenue.
Economic Facts#
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | $30.27 billion (2016 est.) $29.75 billion (2015 est.) $29.08 billion (2014 est.) note: data are in 2016 dollars |
|---|---|
| GDP (official exchange rate) | $8.834 billion (2015 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 1.7% (2016 est.) 2.3% (2015 est.) 6.8% (2014 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | $6,800 (2016 est.) $6,800 (2015 est.) $6,800 (2014 est.) note: data are in 2016 dollars |
| Gross national saving | 22.1% of GDP (2016 est.) 12.4% of GDP (2015 est.) 38.9% of GDP (2014 est.) |
| GDP - composition, by end use | household consumption: 50% government consumption: 10.5% investment in fixed capital: 48.7% investment in inventories: 0.2% exports of goods and services: 44.5% imports of goods and services: -53.9% (2016 est.) |
| GDP - composition, by sector of origin | agriculture: 4.9% industry: 69.8% services: 25.3% (2016 est.) |
| Agriculture - products | cassava (manioc, 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 | 3.5% (2016 est.) |
| Labor force | 1.807 million (2013 est.) |
| Unemployment rate | 53% (2012 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | 46.5% (2011 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2.1% highest 10%: 37.1% (2005) |
| Budget | revenues: $3.562 billion expenditures: $4.233 billion (2016 est.) |
| Taxes and other revenues | 40.3% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | -7.6% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Public debt | 49.3% of GDP (2016 est.) 48% of GDP (2015 est.) |
| Fiscal year | calendar year |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.3% (2016 est.) 2.6% (2015 est.) |
| Central bank discount rate | 4.25% (31 December 2009) 4.75% (31 December 2008) |
| Commercial bank prime lending rate | 14% (31 December 2016 est.) 14.8% (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Stock of narrow money | $3.274 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $3.131 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Stock of broad money | $4.875 billion (31 December 2015 est.) $4.858 billion (31 December 2014 est.) |
| Stock of domestic credit | $1.825 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $1.807 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | $NA |
| Current account balance | -$728 million (2016 est.) -$1.861 billion (2015 est.) |
| Exports | $4.777 billion (2016 est.) $5.231 billion (2015 est.) |
| Exports - commodities | petroleum, lumber, plywood, sugar, cocoa, coffee, diamonds |
| Exports - partners | China 42.1%, Italy 16.9%, US 4.9%, India 4.7%, Portugal 4.2% (2015) |
| Imports | $3.447 billion (2016 est.) $3.934 billion (2015 est.) |
| Imports - commodities | capital equipment, construction materials, foodstuffs |
| Imports - partners | China 20.3%, France 14.2%, South Korea 9.8%, US 4.9%, UK 4.4%, Italy 4.1%, India 4.1% (2015) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | $1.989 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $2.244 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Debt - external | $4.817 billion (31 December 2016 est.) $4.324 billion (31 December 2015 est.) |
| Exchange rates | Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar - 589.4 (2016 est.) 591.45 (2015 est.) 591.45 (2014 est.) 494.42 (2013 est.) 510.53 (2012 est.) |