vatizations
are nearly complete, the banking sector is almost completely in foreign
hands, and foreign investment has picked up. Slovakia's economy exceeded
expectations in 2001, despite recession in key export markets. Revival
of domestic demand, partly due to a rise in real wages, offset slowing
export growth to help drive the economy to its strongest expansion since
1998. Solid domestic demand is expected to boost economic growth to 3.4%
in 2002, and about 4% in 2003. Unemployment, rising to 19.8% at the end
of 2001, remained the economy's Achilles' heel. The government faces
other strong challenges in 2002, especially the maintenance of fiscal
balance ahead of the September 2002 parliamentary election, cutting
budget and current account deficits, and privatization of the Slovak
energy and power monopolies.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $62 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 3% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $11,500 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4% industry: 32% services: 64%
(2000 est.)

Population below poverty line: NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 5.1%
highest 10%: 18.2% (1992)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 26.3 (1996)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 7.4% (2001 est.)

Labor force: 3 million (1999)

Labor force - by occupation: industry 29.3%, agriculture 8.9%,
construction 8%, transport and communication 8.2%, services 45.6% (1994)

Unemployment rate: 19.8% (yearend 2001 est.)

Budget: revenues: $5.2 billion expenditures: $5.6 billion, including
capital expenditures of $NA (1999)

Industries: metal and metal products; food and beverages; electricity,
gas, coke, oil, nuclear fuel; chemicals and manmade fibers; machinery;
paper and printing; earthenware and ceramics; transport vehicles;
textiles; electrical and optical apparatus; rubber products

Industrial production growth rate: 4% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production: 27.53 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 35.34% hydro: 17.11%
other: 0% (2000) nuclear: 47.55%

Electricity - consumption: 25.203 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - exports: 4.9 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - imports: 4.5 billion kWh (2000)

Agriculture - products: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit;
pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products

Exports: $12.5 billion (f.o.b., 2001 est.)

Export