Slovakia

Economy - overview:
Slovakia has made significant economic reforms since its separation from the Czech Republic in 1993. Reforms to the taxation, healthcare, pension, and social welfare systems helped Slovakia to consolidate its budget and get on track to join the EU in 2004 and to adopt the euro in January 2009. Major privatizations are nearly complete, the banking sector is almost entirely in foreign hands, and the government has helped facilitate a foreign investment boom with business friendly policies such as labor market liberalization and a 19% flat tax. Foreign investment in the automotive and electronic sectors has been strong. Slovakia’s economic growth exceeded expectations in 2001-08 despite the general European slowdown. Unemployment, at an unacceptable 18% in 2003-04, dropped to 7.4% in 2008 but remains the economy’s Achilles heel. Despite its 2006 pre-election promises to loosen fiscal policy and reverse the previous DZURINDA government’s pro-market reforms, FICO’s cabinet has thus far been careful to keep a lid on spending in order to meet euro adoption criteria and has focused on regulating energy and food prices instead. The OECD expects Slovakia’s GDP growth to be positive in 2009.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$119.5 billion (2008 est.)
$112.3 billion (2007)
$101.7 billion (2006)
GDP (official exchange rate):
$100.6 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
6.4% (2008 est.)
10.4% (2007 est.)
8.5% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$21,900 (2008 est.)
$20,600 (2007 est.)
$18,700 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2.6%
industry: 33.4%
services: 64% (2008 est.)
Labor force:
2.254 million (2008 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 4%, industry 39%, services 56.9% (30 September 2008)
Unemployment rate:
8.4% (2008)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 20.9% (1996)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
26 (2005)
Investment (gross fixed):
25.9% of GDP (2008 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $44.86 billion
expenditures: $46.96 billion (2008 est.)
Public debt:
35% of GDP (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.6% (2008)
Central bank discount rate:
4%
note: this is the European Central Bank’s rate on the marginal lending facility, which offers overnight credit to banks from the eurosystem; as of 1 January 2009 Slovakia became a member of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) (February 2009)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
6.42% (31 December 2008)
Stock of money:
$26.93 billion
note: this figure represents the US dollar value of Slovak koruny in circulation prior to Slovakia joining the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU); see entry for the European Union for money supply in the euro area; the European Central Bank (ECB) controls monetary policy for the 16 members of the EMU; individual members of the EMU do not control the quantity of money and quasi money circulating within their own borders (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$23.16 billion (31 December 2008)
Stock of domestic credit:
$55.1 billion (31 December 2008)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$6.971 billion (31 December 2007)
Agriculture - products:
grains, potatoes, sugar beets, hops, fruit; pigs, cattle, poultry; forest products
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:
6.5% (2008 est.)
Electricity - production:
26.17 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - consumption:
26 billion kWh (2006 est.)
Electricity - exports:
11.85 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Electricity - imports:
12.73 billion kWh (2007 est.)
Oil - production:
12,770 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - consumption:
82,860 bbl/day (2007 est.)
Oil - exports:
72,240 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - imports:
134,100 bbl/day (2005)
Oil - proved reserves:
9 million bbl (1 January 2008 est.)
Natural gas - production:
128 million cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - consumption:
6.216 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - exports:
180 million cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
6.268 billion cu m (2007 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves:
14.16 billion cu m (1 January 2008 est.)
Current account balance:
-$5.359 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:
$79.12 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:
vehicles 25.9%, machinery and electrical equipment 21.3%, base metals 14.6%, chemicals and minerals 10.1%, plastics 5.4% (2004)
Exports - partners:
Germany 21.4%, Czech Republic 12.6%, France 6.7%, Italy 6.4%, Poland 6.2%, Hungary 6%, Austria 5.8%, UK 4.8% (2007)
Imports:
$79.76 billion f.o.b. (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and transport equipment 41.1%, intermediate manufactured goods 19.3%, fuels 12.3%, chemicals 9.8%, miscellaneous manufactured goods 10.2% (2003)
Imports - partners:
Germany 22.1%, Czech Republic 17.3%, Russia 9.2%, Hungary 6.7%, Austria 5.1%, Poland 4.9%, South Korea 4.7% (2007)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$19.47 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$53.04 billion (30 September 2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$47.68 billion (2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$1.564 billion (2008 est.)
Exchange rates:
Slovak koruny (SKK) per US dollar - 21.05 (2008 est.), 24.919 (2007), 29.611 (2006), 31.018 (2005), 32.257 (2004)
note: on 1 January 2009 Slovakia adopted the euro as legal tender