Economy Overview
Bolivia is a resource rich country with strong growth attributed to captive markets for natural gas exports – to Brazil and Argentina. However, the country remains one of the least developed countries in Latin America because of state-oriented policies that deter investment.Following an economic crisis during the early 1980s, reforms in the 1990s spurred private investment, stimulated economic growth, and cut poverty rates. The period 2003-05 was characterized by political instability, racial tensions, and violent protests against plans - subsequently abandoned - to export Bolivia's newly discovered natural gas reserves to large Northern Hemisphere markets. In 2005-06, the government passed hydrocarbon laws that imposed significantly higher royalties and required foreign firms then operating under risk-sharing contracts to surrender all production to the state energy company in exchange for a predetermined service fee; the laws engendered much public debate. High commodity prices between 2010 and 2014 sustained rapid growth and large trade surpluses with GDP growing 6.8% in 2013 and 5.4% in 2014. The global decline in oil prices that began in late 2014 exerted downward pressure on the price Bolivia receives for exported gas and resulted in lower GDP growth rates - 4.9% in 2015 and 4.3% in 2016 - and losses in government revenue as well as fiscal and trade deficits.A lack of foreign investment in the key sectors of mining and hydrocarbons, along with conflict among social groups, pose challenges for the Bolivian economy. In 2015, President Evo MORALES expanded efforts to court international investment and boost Bolivia’s energy production capacity. MORALES passed an investment law and promised not to nationalize additional industries in an effort to improve the investment climate. In early 2016, the Government of Bolivia approved the 2016-2020 National Economic and Social Development Plan aimed at maintaining growth of 5% and reducing poverty.
Agriculture Products
soybeans, quinoa, Brazil nuts, sugarcane, coffee, corn, rice, potatoes, chia, coca
Industries
mining, smelting, electricity, petroleum, food and beverages, handicrafts, clothing, jewelry
Industrial Production Growth Rate
2.2%
(2017 est.)
Labor Force
5.719 million
(2016 est.)
Labor Force by Occupation
Agriculture: 29.4%
Industry: 22%
Services: 48.6%
(2015 est.)
Unemployment Rate
4%
(2016 est.)
Population Below Poverty Line
38.6%
(2015 est.)
Household Income or Consumption by Percentage Share
Lowest 10%: 0.9%
Highest 10%: 36.1%
(2014 est.)
Budget
Revenues: 15.09 billion
(2017 est.)
Expenditures: 18.02 billion
(2017 est.)
Public Debt
44.9% of GDP
(2016 est.)
Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate
Market Value of Publicly Traded Shares
Reserves of Foreign Exchange and Gold
$10.08 billion
(31 December 2016 est.)
Debt External
$7.268 billion
(31 December 2016 est.)
Stock of Direct Foreign Investment at Home
Stock of Direct Foreign Investment Abroad
Exchange Rates
6.91
(2013 est.)
