celand

Economy - overview: Iceland's Scandinavian-type economy is basically
capitalistic, yet with an extensive welfare system, low unemployment, and
remarkably even distribution of income. In the absence of other natural
resources (except for abundant hydrothermal and geothermal power),
the economy depends heavily on the fishing industry, providing 70%
of export earnings and employing 12% of the work force. The economy
remains sensitive to declining fish stocks as well as to drops in
world prices for its main exports: fish and fish products, aluminum,
and ferrosilicon. The center-right government plans to continue its
policies of reducing the budget and current account deficits, limiting
foreign borrowing, containing inflation, revising agricultural and
fishing policies, diversifying the economy, and privatizing state-owned
industries. The government remains opposed to EU membership, primarily
because of Icelanders' concern about losing control over their fishing
resources. Iceland's economy has been diversifying into manufacturing and
service industries in the last decade, and new developments in software
production, biotechnology, and financial services are taking place. The
tourism sector is also expanding, with the recent trends in ecotourism
and whale watching. Growth has been remarkably steady over the past five
years at 4%-5%.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $6.85 billion (2000 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 4.3% (2000 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $24,800 (2000 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 15% (includes fishing 13%)
industry: 21% services: 64% (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.5% (2000 est.)

Labor force: 159,000 (2000)

Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 5.1%, fishing and fish
processing 11.8%, manufacturing 12.9%, construction 10.7%, other services
59.5% (1999)

Unemployment rate: 1% (April 2001 est.)

Budget: revenues: $3.5 billion expenditures: $3.3 billion, including
capital expenditures of $467 million (1999)

Industries: fish processing; aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production,
geothermal power; tourism

Industrial production growth rate: 1.5% (2000 est.)

Electricity - production: 7.549 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 0.05% hydro: 83.3%
other: