| Economy overview |
With no direct taxation, the islands are a thriving offshore financial center. More than 40,000 companies were registered in the Cayman Islands as of 1998, including almost 600 banks and trust companies; banking assets exceed $500 billion. A stock exchange was opened in 1997. Tourism is also a mainstay, accounting for about 70% of GDP and 75% of foreign currency earnings. The tourist industry is aimed at the luxury market and caters mainly to visitors from North America. Total tourist arrivals exceeded 1.2 million in 1997, with 600,000 from the US. About 90% of the islands' food and consumer goods must be imported. The Caymanians enjoy one of the highest outputs per capita and one of the highest standards of living in the world. |
| GDP |
purchasing power parity - $1.27 billion (2002 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate |
1.7% (2002 est.) |
| GDP - per capita |
purchasing power parity - $35,000 (2002 est.) |
| GDP - composition by sector |
agriculture: 1.4%
industry: 3.2%
services: 95.4% (1994 est.) |
| Investment gross fixed |
|
| Population below poverty line |
NA (2002 est.) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share |
lowest 10%: na
highest 10%: na |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index |
|
| Inflation rate consumer prices |
2.8% (2002) |
| Labor force |
19,820 (1995) |
| Labor force by occupation |
agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) |
| Unemployment rate |
4.1% (1997) |
| Budget |
revenues: $265.2 million
expenditures: $248.9 million, including capital expenditures of na (1997) |
| Public debt |
|
| Agriculture products |
vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle farming |
| Industries |
tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture |
| Industrial production growth rate |
NA |
| Electricity production |
381.9 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity production by source |
fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0%
other: 0% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
| Electricity consumption |
355.2 million kWh (2001) |
| Electricity exports |
0 kWh (2001) |
| Electricity imports |
0 kWh (2001) |
| Oil production |
0 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
| Oil consumption |
2,400 bbl/day (2001 est.) |
| Oil exports |
NA (2001) |
| Oil imports |
NA (2001) |
| Oil proved reserves |
|
| Natural gas production |
|
| Natural gas consumption |
|
| Natural gas exports |
|
| Natural gas imports |
|
| Natural gas proved reserves |
|
| Current account balance |
|
| Exports |
$1.2 million (1999) |
| Exports commodities |
turtle products, manufactured consumer goods |
| Exports partners |
mostly US |
| Imports |
$457.4 million (1999) |
| Imports commodities |
foodstuffs, manufactured goods |
| Imports partners |
US, Trinidad and Tobago, UK, Netherlands Antilles, Japan |
| Reserves of foreign exchange gold |
|
| Debt external |
$70 million (1996) |
| Economic aid recipient |
NA (1999) |
| Currency |
Caymanian dollar (KYD) |
| Currency code |
KYD |
| Exchange rates |
Caymanian dollars per US dollar - 0.82 (29 October 2001), 0.83 (3 November 1995), 0.85 (22 November 1993) |
| Fiscal year |
1 April - 31 March |