Austria

Austria Economy

Economy - overview
Austria, with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living, is closely tied to other EU economies, especially Germany's. Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to EU aspirant economies. Slow growth in Germany and elsewhere in the world held the economy to 0.7% growth in 2001, 1.4% in 2002, and again less than 1% in 2003. However, recent data signal that the recovery has started. The government estimates economic growth in 2004 of 1.7-2.1% and of 2.5% in 2005. The government is planning a EURO 500 billion income tax cut in 2004, though some economists doubt it will have stimulative effects in 2004, because it will be offset by higher health insurance contributions and higher taxes on energy. For 2005, Austria plans a tax cut of EURO 2.5 billion and harmonization of the various pension schemes. To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, particularly the new EU members, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy, continue to deregulate the service sector, and lower its tax burden. A key issue is the encouragement of much greater participation in the labor market by its aging population.

GDP
purchasing power parity - $245.3 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - real growth rate
0.7% (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita
purchasing power parity - $30,000 (2003 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 3.5%
industry: 25.7%
services: 70.9% (2003 est.)

Investment
22.5% of GDP (2003)

Population below poverty line
3.9% (1999)

Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%: 2.5%
highest 10%: 22.5% (1995)

Distribution of family income - Gini index
31 (1995)

Inflation rate
1.4% (2003 est.)

Labor force
3.425 million (2003)

Labor force - by occupation
agriculture and forestry 4%, industry and crafts 29%, services 67% (2001 est.)

Unemployment rate
4.4% (2003 est.)

Budget
revenues: $67 billion
expenditures: $70 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.)

Public debt
67.6% of GDP (2003)

Agriculture - products
grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber

Industries
construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism

Industrial production growth rate
1.9% (2003 est.)

Electricity - production
58.75 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - consumption
54.85 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - exports
14.25 billion kWh (2001)

Electricity - imports
14.47 billion kWh (2001)

Oil - production
20,670 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption
262,400 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports
35,470 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports
262,000 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - proved reserves
85.69 million bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production
1.731 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - consumption
7.81 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - exports
403 million cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports
6.033 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves
24.9 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance
$-1.353 billion (2003)

Exports
$83.45 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Exports - commodities
machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel; textiles, foodstuffs

Exports - partners
Germany 31.9%, Italy 9.6%, Switzerland 5.2%, US 4.9%, France 4.8%, UK 4.7% (2003)

Imports
$81.59 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)

Imports - commodities
machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs

Imports - partners
Germany 43.2%, Italy 6.7%, Hungary 5.4%, Switzerland 5%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003)

Reserves of foreign exchange & gold
$12.73 billion (2003)

Debt - external
$15.5 billion (2003 est.)

Currency
euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by the financial institutions of member countries; as of 1 January 2002, the euro became the only legal tender in EMU member countries, including Austria

Currency code
EUR

Exchange rates
euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999)



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