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Middle East and North Africa
Syria |
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Last reviewed: 23 March 2009 |
Country information
ECONOMY
Basic Economic Facts
GDP: $36 billion (USD)
GDP per head: $ 1,865
Annual Growth in GDP:
Inflation:
Exchange rate: £1 (GBP) = £68.17 (SYP)
Economic Structure:
The two mainstays of the Syrian Economy are the oil sector and agriculture, which each account for about a quarter of GDP, varying from year to year depending on prices and climatic conditions. However, due to the depletion of Syrian oil reserves, other sectors such as financial services, construction, telecommunications, non-oil industry and trade, are starting to assume increasing importance. Major industrial activity has until recently been in the hands of the Government, and whilst almost all sectors are now nominally open to private sector involvement, the number of large private sector industrial projects remains limited.
Foreign Trade:
Trade has grown in importance in recent years, with the total volume of trade (imports plus exports) growing from 48% of Syrian GDP in 2000 to 60% in 2006. Syria’s exports (worth $10.1 billion in 2006) are dominated by oil - crude oil and minerals account for some 40% of total exports. Other major exported products include food and agricultural products, cotton and textiles. Imports (worth $10.6 billion in 2006) are more diverse and include refined petroleum products, food and agricultural products, machinery, transport equipment, chemicals and base metals.
Major trading partners:
Exports: Italy 19.6%, France 8.8%, Saudi Arabia 8.7%, Iraq 6.4%, UK 4.3%, Jordan 3.9%.
Imports: China 6.5%, Egypt 5.2%, South Korea 4.2%, Italy 3.4%, Turkey 3.2%, Japan 3.0%
Economic Policy:
The economy is a high priority for President Bashar. Since his appointment as President in 2000, he has begun the process of moving Syria away from a centrally-controlled economy towards what is described as a “social market economy”. Banking and insurance have been opened to the private sector, and new legislation has been passed which is intended to encourage greater foreign investment. Further reforms, including the reduction of fuel subsidies, the introduction of a stock market and of Value Added Tax, are planned but have suffered from delays.
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Contacts
Address:
8 Belgrave Square
London SW1X 8PH
Telephone:
(020) 7245 9012
Fax:
(020) 7235 4621
Office hours:
Mon-Fri: 0930-1530
Website: http://syremb.com