Bahamas: Economic Outline

Economic Indicators

The financial crisis and the recession have had a strong impact on the Bahamian economy, which is based on financial activities and tourism, while the latter is highly dependent on the economic conditions of the United States, thus leading to a drop in GDP of 4.3% in 2009. The country’s economy was again growing slightly in 2010 (0.5%), thanks to the resumption in tourism and should continue to experience slow growth in the coming years.

The Bahamian economy, which has few natural resources and an under-developed industrial sector, remains very dependent on tourism (60% of GDP) and to a lesser extent, on the financial services industry. The crisis has greatly worsened the fiscal position of the country: the public debt has risen, while the debt/GDP ratio has increased. The government has therefore presented a budget aiming to remedy the situation. Measures have also been taken to strengthen the financial system and improve monitoring. In parallel, the government has initiated significant efforts to improve the basic public services infrastructures (energy, water and transportation) and to support the tourism sector, which is essential to the economy. Numerous real estate projects are being planned as well as public and private infrastructure projects (road and air infrastructures -Nassau's airport).

Compared to the rest of the region, the Bahamas have a very high per capita GDP (23,000 USD, i.e. the third highest rate in the Americas, after the U.S. and Canada). However, the global economic crisis caused an increase in unemployment, in 2010 affecting 15% of the active workplace.

Main Indicators	2009	2010	2011	2012 (e)	2013 (e)
GDP (billions USD)	7.81	7.70e	8.07	8.55	8.98
GDP (Constant Prices, Annual % Change)	-5.4	1.0	2.0	2.5	2.7
GDP per Capita (USD)	22,909	22,350	23,175e	24,279	25,200
General Government Gross Debt (in % of GDP)	37.9	45.4e	48.6	49.9	51.8
Inflation Rate (%)	2.1	1.0e	2.5	2.0	2.0
Current Account (billions USD)	-0.89	-0.90	-1.36e	-1.58	-1.76
Current Account (in % of GDP)	-11.4	-11.7e	-16.9	-19.6	-

Source: IMF - World Economic Outlook Database - Last Available Data.

Note: (e) Estimated Data

Monetary Indicators	2008	2009	2010
Bahamian Dollar (BSD) - Average Annual Exchange Rate For 1 USD	1.00	1.00	1.00

Source: World Bank - Last Available Data.

Find out all the exchange rates daily on our service Currency converter.

Main Sectors of Industry

Breakdown of Economic Activity By Sector	Agriculture	Industry	Services
Employment By Sector (in % of Total Employment)	2.9	16.0	80.8
Value Added (in % of GDP)	1.7	22.5	75.8
Value Added (Annual % Change)	-18.2	-	10.1

Source: World Bank - Last Available Data.

Socio-Demographic Indicators	2011	2012 (e)	2013 (e)
Unemployment Rate (%)	13.7	11.0	9.5

Source: World Bank - Last Available Data

Learn more about Market Analysis about The Bahamas on Globaltrade.net, the Directory for International Trade Services.

Indicator of Economic Freedom

Score:: 68.0/100
Position:: Moderately free
World Rank:: 42/179
Regional Rank:: 5/26

Distribution of Economic freedom in the world
Source: 2011 Index of Economic freedom, Heritage Foundation

Country Risk

See the Country Risk Analysis Provided By Ducroire.

Indicator of Political Freedom

Ranking:: Free
Political Freedom:: 1/7
Civil Liberties:: 1/7

Map of freedom 2010
Source: Freedom House

Sources of General Economic Information

Main Online Newspapers and Portals: The Bahamas Journal
The Nassau Guardian
Bahamas Newspapers, Magazines and News Sites
Official tourist website of Bahamas

Useful Resources: Ministry of Finance
Central Bank

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