ntal bands of blue (top), white, and blue
with the national coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat
of arms features a round emblem encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE
EL SALVADOR EN LA AMERICA CENTRAL; similar to the flag of Nicaragua,
which has a different coat of arms centered in the white band - it
features a triangle encircled by the words REPUBLICA DE NICARAGUA on
top and AMERICA CENTRAL on the bottom; also similar to the flag of
Honduras, which has five blue stars arranged in an X pattern
centered in the white band

Economy
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Economic overview: El Salvador possesses a fast-growing
entrepreneurial economy in which 90% of economic activity is in
private hands, with growth averaging 5% since 1990. Yet, because the
1980s were a decade of civil war and stagnation, per capita GDP has
not regained the level of the late 1970s. The rebound in the 1990s
stems from the government program, in conjunction with the IMF, of
privatization, deregulation, and fiscal stabilization. The economy
now is oriented more toward manufacturing and services compared with
agriculture. The sizable trade deficits are in the main covered by
remittances from the large number of Salvadorans abroad.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $11.4 billion (1995 est.)

GDP real growth rate: 6.3% (1995 est.)

GDP per capita: $1,950 (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 11.4% (1995 est.)

Labor force: 1.7 million (1982 est.)
by occupation: agriculture 40%, commerce 16%, manufacturing 15%,
government 13%, financial services 9%, transportation 6%, other 1%

Unemployment rate: 6.7% (1993)

Budget:
revenues: $846 million
expenditures: $890 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1992 est.)

Industries: food processing, beverages, petroleum, tobacco,
chemicals, textiles, furniture

Industrial production growth rate: 7.6% (1993)

Electricity:
capacity: 750,000 kW
production: 2.4 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 408 kWh (1993)

Agriculture: coffee, sugarcane, corn, rice, beans, oilseed; beef,
dairy products; shrimp

Illicit drugs: transshipment point for cocaine; marijuana produced
for local consumption

Exports: $1.6 billion (f.o.b., 1995 est.)
commodities: coffee, sugarcane, shrimp
partners: US, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Germany

Imports: $3.3 billion (c.i.f.,