r. Latvia projects 6% GDP growth, 2.5%-3.0%
inflation, and a 1.7% fiscal deficit in 2001. Preparing for EU
membership over the next few years remains a top foreign policy goal.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $17.3 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 5.5% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $7,200 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 5%

industry: 33%

services: 62% (1999)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%:
2.9%

highest 10%: 25.9% (1998)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.7% (2000)

Labor force: 1.4 million (2000 est.)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 10%, industry 25%, services
65% (2000 est.)

Unemployment rate: 7.8% (2000 est.)

Budget: revenues: $1.33 billion

expenditures: $1.27 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1998 est.)

Industries: buses, vans, street and railroad cars, synthetic fibers,
agricultural machinery, fertilizers, washing machines, radios,
electronics, pharmaceuticals, processed foods, textiles; note -
dependent on imports for energy, raw materials, and intermediate
products

Industrial production growth rate: 6.3% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: 3.996 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 31.78%

hydro: 68.22%

nuclear: 0%

other: 0% (1999)

Electricity - consumption: 4.316 billion kWh (1999)

Electricity - exports: 400 million kWh (1999)

Electricity - imports: 1 billion kWh (1999)

Agriculture - products: grain, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables;
beef, milk, eggs; fish

Exports: $2.1 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Exports - commodities: wood and wood products, machinery and
equipment, metals, textiles, foodstuffs

Exports - partners: Germany 16%, UK 11%, Sweden 11%, Russia 7% (1999)

Imports: $3.2 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, chemicals, fuels

Imports - partners: Russia 15%, Germany 10%, Finland 9%, Sweden 7%
(1999)

Debt - external: $800 million (2000 est.)

Economic aid - recipient: $96.2 million (1995)

Currency: Latvian lat (LVL)

Currency code: LVL

Exchange rates: lati per US dollar - 0.614 (January 2001), 0.607
(2000), 0.585 (1999), 0.590 (1998), 0.581 (1997), 0.551 (1996)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Latvia Communications

Telephones - main lines in use: 748,000 (1997)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 77,100