World Business | Asia | Asia Business | Burma

Economy - overview:
Burma is a resource-rich country that suffers from government controls, inefficient economic policies, and abject rural poverty. The junta 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the "Burmese Way to Socialism", but those efforts have since stalled and some of the liberalization measures have been rescinded. Burma has been unable to achieve monetary or fiscal stability, resulting in an economy that suffers from serious macroeconomic imbalances - including inflation and multiple official exchange rates that overvalue the Burmese kyat. In addition, most overseas development assistance ceased after the junta began to suppress the democracy movement in 1988 and subsequently ignored the results of the 1990 legislative elections. Economic sanctions against Burma by the United States - including a ban on imports of Burmese products and a ban on provision of financial services by US persons in response to the government of Burma's attack in May 2003 on AUNG SAN SUU KYI and her convoy - further slowed the inflow of foreign exchange. Official statistics are inaccurate. Published statistics on foreign trade are greatly understated because of the size of the black market and unofficial border trade - often estimated to be one to two times the size of the official economy. Though the Burmese government has good economic relations with its neighbors, a better investment climate and an improved political situation 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. As of January 2004, the largest private banks remained moribund, leaving the private sector with little formal access to credit.
 

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

Airlines
Airlines in Asia
Airlines Worldwide

Airports
Airports in Asia
Airports Worldwide

Country Budget
revenues: $474.9 million
expenditures: $955.5 million, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion (2004 est.)

Currency (code): kyat (MMK)

Currency Exchange Rates
kyats per US dollar - 5.7459 (2004), 6.0764 (2003), 6.5734 (2002), 6.6841 (2001), 6.4257 (2000)
note: these are official exchange rates; unofficial exchange rates ranged in 2004 from 815 kyat/US dollar to nearly 970 kyat/US dollar

Fiscal Year: 1 April - 31 March

GDP (Gross Domestic Product)
GDP (purchasing power parity):  $74.3 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:  -1.3% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita:  purchasing power parity - $1,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 56.6%
industry: 8.8%
services: 34.5% (2004 est.)

Imports / Exports
Exports: $2.137 billion f.o.b.
note: official export figures are grossly underestimated due to the value of timber, gems, narcotics, rice, and other products smuggled to Thailand, China, and Bangladesh (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: clothing, gas, wood products, pulses, beans, fish, rice
Exports - partners: Thailand 37.8%, India 11.7%, China 6%, Japan 5.3% (2004)

Imports: $1.754 billion f.o.b.
note: import figures are grossly underestimated due to the value of consumer goods, diesel fuel, and other products smuggled in from Thailand, China, Malaysia, and India (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: fabric, petroleum products, plastics, machinery, transport equipment, construction materials, crude oil; food products
Imports - partners: China 29.8%, Singapore 20.8%, Thailand 19.3%, South Korea 5.2%, Malaysia 4.8% (2004)

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

Investing
Forex, Foreign Exchange Market: Currency Trading

Labor Force & Unemployment Rate
Labor force:  27.01 million (2004 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:  agriculture 70%, industry 7%, services 23% (2001 est.)
Unemployment rate:  5.2% (2004 est.)