Economy - overview:

Honduras, the second poorest country in Central America, has an extraordinarily unequal distribution of income and high unemployment. The economy relies heavily on a narrow range of exports, notably bananas and coffee, making it vulnerable to natural disasters and shifts in commodity prices; however, investments in the maquila and non-traditional export sectors are slowly diversifying the economy. Economic growth remains dependent on the US economy its largest trading partner, and will decline in 2009 as a result of reduction in export demand and tightening global credit markets. Remittances represent over a quarter of GDP or nearly three-quarters of exports. The US-Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) came into force in 2006 and has helped foster investment. Despite improvements in tax collections, the government`s fiscal deficit is growing due to increases in current expenditures and financial losses from the state energy and telephone companies.

GDP (purchasing power parity):

$33.63 billion (2008 est.)

$32.34 billion (2007)

$30.42 billion (2006)

note: data are in 2008 US dollars

GDP (official exchange rate):

$13.78 billion (2008 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

4% (2008 est.)

6.3% (2007 est.)

6.3% (2006 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):

$4,400 (2008 est.)

$4,300 (2007 est.)

$4,200 (2006 est.)

note: data are in 2008 US dollars

GDP - composition by sector:

agriculture: 13.4%

industry: 28.2%

services: 58.5% (2008 est.)

Labor force:

2.892 million (2008 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:

agriculture: 39.2%

industry: 20.9%

services: 39.8% (2005 est.)

Unemployment rate:

6.2% (2008 est.)

note: high level of underemployment with up to a third of the labor force seeking more work.

Population below poverty line:

50.7% (2004)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:

lowest 10%: 1.2%

highest 10%: 42.2% (2003)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:

53.8 (2003)

Investment (gross fixed):

31.5% of GDP (2008 est.)

Budget:

revenues: $2.628 billion

expenditures: $3.183 billion; including capital expenditures of $106 million (2008 est.)

Public debt:

21% of GDP (2008 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

11.9% (2008 est.)

6.9% (2007 est.)

Central bank discount rate:

NA

Commercial bank prime lending rate:

16.61% (31 December 2007)

Stock of money:

$1.573 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of quasi money:

$5.266 billion (31 December 2007)

Stock of domestic credit:

$6.298 billion (31 December 2007)

Market value of publicly traded shares:

$NA

Agriculture - products:

bananas, coffee, citrus; beef; timber; shrimp, tilapia, lobster; corn, African palm

Industries:

sugar, coffee, textiles, clothing, wood products

Industrial production growth rate:

4% (2008 est.)

Electricity - production:

5.753 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - consumption:

4.233 billion kWh (2006 est.)

Electricity - exports:

0 kWh (2007 est.)

Electricity - imports:

11.8 million kWh (2007 est.)

Oil - production:

0 bbl/day (2007 est.)

Oil - consumption:

46,830 bbl/day (2006 est.)

Oil - exports:

417.9 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - imports:

44,040 bbl/day (2005)

Oil - proved reserves:

0 bbl (1 January 2006 est.)

Natural gas - production:

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - exports:

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - imports:

0 cu m (2007 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:

0 cu m (1 January 2006 est.)

Current account balance:

$-2.047 billion (2008 est.)

Exports:

$6.236 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)

Exports - commodities:

coffee, shrimp, bananas, gold, palm oil, fruit, lobster, lumber

Exports - partners:

US 67.2%, El Salvador 4.9%, Guatemala 3.9% (2007)

Imports:

$10.2 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)

Imports - commodities:

machinery and transport equipment, industrial raw materials, chemical products, fuels, foodstuffs

Imports - partners:

US 52.4%, Guatemala 7.1%, El Salvador 5.2%, Mexico 4.5%, Costa Rica 4.2% (2007)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:

$2.096 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

Debt - external:

$3.602 billion (31 December 2008 est.)

Exchange rates:

lempiras (HNL) per US dollar - 18.983 (2008 est.), 18.9 (2007), 18.895 (2006), 18.92 (2005), 18.206 (2004)