In December 1996, incoming President FERNANDEZ
presented a bold reform package for this Caribbean economy - including
the devaluation of the peso, income tax cuts, a 50% increase in sales
taxes, reduced import tariffs, and increased gasoline prices - in an
attempt to create a market-oriented economy that can compete
internationally. Even though most reforms are stalled in the
legislature - including the intellectual property rights bill, social
security reform, and a new electricity law first submitted in 1993 -
the economy has grown vigorously under FERNANDEZ's administration.
Construction, tourism and telecommunications are leading the advance.
The government is working to increase electric generating capacity, a
key to continued economic growth; the state electricity company was
finally privatized following numerous delays. The continuation of this
vigorous growth in 2000 will depend on the policies adopted by the new
administration.

purchasing power parity - $43.7 billion (1999 est.)

8.3% (1999 est.)

purchasing power parity - $5,400 (1999 est.)

agriculture: 13.6%
industry: 30.8%
services: 55.6% (1998 est.)

25% (1999 est.)

lowest 10%: 1.6%
highest 10%: 39.6% (1989)

5.1% (1999)

2.3 million to 2.6 million

services and government 58.7%, industry
24.3%, agriculture 17% (1998 est.)

13.8% (1999 est.)

revenues: $2.3 billion
expenditures: $2.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $867
million (1999 est.)

tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining,
textiles, cement, tobacco

6.3% (1995 est.)

8.476 billion kWh (1998)

fossil fuel: 72.04%
hydro: 27.62%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0.34% (1998)

7.883 billion kWh (1998)

0 kWh (1998)

0 kWh (1998)

sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco,
rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products,
beef, eggs

$5.1 billion (f.o.b., 1999)

ferronickel, sugar, gold, silver, coffee,
cocoa, tobacco, meats

US 61.6%, Belgium 11.1%, Asia 5.9%, Canada 2.9%
(1998 est.)

$8.2 billion (f.o.b., 1999)

foodstuffs, petroleum, cotton and fabrics,
chemicals and pharmaceuticals

US 56%, Venezuela 23%, Mexico 9%, Japan 4% (1999
est.)

$3.7 billion (1999 est.)

$239.6 million (1995)

1 Dominican peso (RD$) = 100 centavos

Dominican pesos (RD$) per US$1 - 16.161 (January
2000), 16.033 (1999), 15.267 (1998), 14.265 (1997), 13.775 (1996),
13.597 (1995)

calendar year