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Economy overview:
With no direct taxation, the Islands are a thriving offshore financial
center; 28,000 foreign companies do business with the 600 registered
banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion.
Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and
75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed
at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North
America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1 million visitors in
1995 and again in 1996. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer
goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest
outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living
in the world.
GDP:
purchasing power parity $860 million (1996 est.)
GDP real growth
rate:
4.5% (1996 est.)
GDP per capita:
purchasing power parity $23,800 (1996 est.)
GDP composition
by sector:
agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 3.2%
services: 95.4% (1994 est.)
Inflation rate consumer
price index: 2.1%
(1996 est.)
Labor force:
total: 8,061
by occupation: service workers 18.7%, clerical 18.6%, construction
12.5%, finance and investment 6.7%, directors and business managers
5.9% (1979)
Unemployment rate:
7% (1992)
Budget:
revenues: $141.5 million
expenditures: $160.7 million, including capital expenditures
of $NA (1991)
Industries:
tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction
materials, furniture
Industrial production
growth rate:
NA%
Electricity capacity:
75,000 kW (1995)
Electricity production:
230
million kWh (1995)
Electricity consumption
per capita: 6,929
kWh (1995)
Agriculture products:
vegetables,
fruit; livestock; turtle farming
Exports:
total value: $3.4 million (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
commodities: turtle products, manufactured consumer goods
partners: mostly US
Imports:
total value: $333 million (c.i.f., 1995 est.)
commodities: foodstuffs, manufactured goods
partners: US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles,
Japan
Debt external:
$NA
Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $NA
Currency:
1 Caymanian dollar (CI$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates:
Caymanian
dollars (CI$) per US$1 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November
1993)
Fiscal year:
1 April
31 March
©
CIA 1999
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