down by 55% from the same period in 1995, the
lingering result of the fierce hurricanes of 1995. Unemployment rose
sharply in 1996. The manufacturing sector consists of textile,
electronics, pharmaceutical, and watch assembly plants. The
agricultural sector is small, most food being imported. International
business and financial services are a small but growing component of
the economy. One of the world's largest petroleum refineries is at
Saint Croix. A major economic problem at the beginning of 1997 was the
more than $1 billion in governmental arrears, in income tax refunds,
payments to vendors, and overdue wages.

GDP: purchasing power parity-$1.2 billion (1987 est.)

GDP-real growth rate: NA%

GDP-per capita: purchasing power parity-$12,500 (1987 est.)

GDP-composition by sector:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

Inflation rate-consumer price index: NA%

Labor force:
total: 47,443 (1990 est.)
by occupation: agriculture 1%, industry 20%, services 62%, other 17%
(1990)

Unemployment rate: 6.2% (March 1994)

Budget:
revenues: $364.4 million
expenditures: $364.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1990 est.)

Industries: tourism, petroleum refining, watch assembly, rum
distilling, construction, pharmaceuticals, textiles, electronics

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Electricity-capacity: 316 million kW (1995)

Electricity-production: 1 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity-consumption per capita: 10,285 kWh (1995)

Agriculture-products: truck garden products, fruit, vegetables,
sorghum; Senepol cattle

Exports:
total value: $1.8 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
commodities: refined petroleum products
partners: US, Puerto Rico

Imports:
total value: $2.2 billion (c.i.f., 1992)
commodities: crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, building materials
partners: US, Puerto Rico

Debt-external: $NA

Economic aid: $NA

Currency: 1 United States dollar (US$) = 100 cents

Exchange rates: US currency is used

Fiscal year: 1 October-30 September

Communications

Telephones: 60,000 (1990 est.)

Telephone system:
domestic: modern, uses fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay
international: submarine cable and satellite communications; satellite
earth stations - NA

Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 8, shortwave 0 (1988)

Radios: 105,000 (1994 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 4 (1988 est.)

Televisions: 66,000 (1994 est.)

@Virgin Islands:Transportation

Rail