4 GeoFroggy

Burma

Continent:

Geography

People &
Society

Government

Economy

Energy

Communications

Military &
Security

Transportation

Terrorism

Transnational Issues
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Economy Overview

Burma is a resource-rich country that suffers from government controls and abject rural poverty. The military regime took steps in the early 1990s to liberalize the economy after decades of failure under the "Burmese Way to Socialism", but those efforts have since stalled. Burma has been unable to achieve monetary or fiscal stability, resulting in an economy that suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including a steep inflation rate and an official exchange rate that overvalues the Burmese kyat by more than 100 times the market rate. In addition, most overseas development assistance ceased after the junta suppressed the democracy movement in 1988 and subsequently ignored the results of the 1990 election. A crisis in the private banking sector in early 2003 followed by economic moves against Burma by the United States, the European Union, and Japan - including a US ban on imports from Burma and a Japanese freeze on new bilateral economic aid - further weakened the Burmese economy. Burma is data poor, and official statistics are often dated and inaccurate. Published estimates of Burma's foreign trade are greatly understated because of the size of the black market and border trade - often estimated to be one to two times the official economy. Better relations with foreign countries and relaxed controls at home are needed to promote foreign investment, exports, and tourism. In February 2003, a major banking crisis hit the country's 20 private banks, shutting them down and disrupting the economy. In July and August 2003, the United States imposed a ban on all Burmese imports and a ban on provision of financial services, hampering Burma's ability to obtain foreign exchange. As of January 2004, the largest private banks remained moribund, leaving the private sector with little formal access to credit outside of government contracts.

Agriculture Products

rice, pulses, beans, sesame, groundnuts, sugarcane; hardwood; fish and fish products

Industries

agricultural processing; knit and woven apparel; wood and wood products; copper, tin, tungsten, iron; construction materials; pharmaceuticals; fertilizer; cement

Industrial Production Growth Rate

NA

Labor Force

22.14 million (2003 est.)

Electricity production

6.139 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity Consumption

5.709 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity Exports

0 kWh (2001)

Electricity Imports

0 kWh (2001)

Currency

kyat (MMK)

Unemployment Rate

4.2% (2003)

Population Below Poverty Line

25% (2000 est.)

Household Income or Consumption by Percentage Share

Lowest 10%: 2.8%

Highest 10%: 32.4% (1998)

Budget

Revenues: $7.9 billion

Expenditures: $12.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion (FY96/97)

Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate

Stock of Narrow Money

Stock of Broad Money

Stock of Domestic Credit

Market Value of Publicly Traded Shares

Reserves of Foreign Exchange and Gold

Debt External

$6.011 billion (2003 est.)

Stock of Direct Foreign Investment at Home

Stock of Direct Foreign Investment Abroad

Exchange Rates

Exchange rates: kyats per US dollar - 6.0764 (2003), 6.5734 (2002), 6.6841 (2001), 6.5167 (2000), 6.2858 (1999)

Note: these are official exchange rates; unofficial exchange rates ranged in 2003 from 100 kyat/US dollar to nearly 1000 kyat/US dollar

Year

Fiscal Year

  • 1 April - 31 March

GDP Purchasing Power Parity

    Purchasing power parity - $74.53 billion (2003 est.)

GDP Real Growth Rate

    -0.5% (2003 est.)

GDP Per Capital

    Purchasing power parity - $1,800 (2003 est.)

Gross National Saving

GDP Composition by end Use

GDP Composition by Sector of Origin

  • Agriculture
    57.2%
  • Industry
    9.6%
  • Services
    33.1% (2003 est.)

Inflation Rate Consumer Prices

    49.7% (2003 est.)

Current Account Balance

    $-35 million (2003)

Exports

    $2.434 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports Partners

  • Thailand
    31.5%
  • US
    10.2%
  • India
    9.3%
  • China
    5.8%
  • Japan
    4.8%

Exports Commodities

    Clothing, gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice

Imports

    $2.071 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports Partners

  • China
    31.1%
  • Singapore
    22.3%
  • Thailand
    15.1%
  • South
    Korea
  • Malaysia
    4.8%
  • Japan
    4.3%

Imports Commodities

    Fabric, petroleum products, plastics, machinery, transport equipment, construction materials, crude oil; food products
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