)

Natural gas - consumption:

44.1 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - exports:

2.6 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - imports:

1.9 billion cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:

446 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)

Current account balance:

$7.438 billion (2007 est.)

Exports:

$55.78 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Exports - commodities:

soybeans and derivatives, petroleum and gas, vehicles, corn, wheat

Exports - partners:

Brazil 19.1%, China 9.4%, US 7.9%, Chile 7.6% (2007)

Imports:

$42.53 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.)

Imports - commodities:

machinery, motor vehicles, petroleum and natural gas, organic
chemicals, plastics

Imports - partners:

Brazil 34.6%, US 12.6%, China 12%, Germany 5% (2007)

Economic aid - recipient:

$99.66 million (2005)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$46.12 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Debt - external:

$135.8 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:

$65.31 billion (2007 est.)

Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:

$26.26 billion (2007 est.)

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$79.73 billion (2006)

Currency (code):

Argentine peso (ARS)

Currency code:

ARS

Exchange rates:

Argentine pesos (ARS) per US dollar - 3.1105 (2007), 3.0543 (2006),
2.9037 (2005), 2.9233 (2004), 2.9006 (2003)

Communications
Argentina

Telephones - main lines in use:

9.5 million (2007)

Telephones - mobile cellular:

40.402 million (2007)

Telephone system:

general assessment: by opening the telecommunications market to
competition and foreign investment with the "Telecommunications
Liberalization Plan of 1998," Argentina encouraged the growth of
modern telecommunications technology; fiber-optic cable trunk lines
are being installed between all major cities; major networks are
entirely digital and the availability of telephone service is
improving; fixed-line telephone density is gradually increasing
reaching nearly 25 lines per 100 people in 2007; mobile telephone
subscribership has been increasing rapidly and has reached a level
of 100 telephones per 100 persons
domestic: microwave radio relay, fiber-optic cable, and a domestic
satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network;
more than 110,000 pay telephones are installed and mobile telephone
use is rapidly expanding; broadband services ar