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Cayman Islands Economy |
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The economy of the Cayman Islands was once centred around turtling. However, this industry began to disappear in the twentieth century and tourism and financial services began to become the economic mainstays during the 1970s. The United States is the Cayman Islands' largest trading partner. With an average income of around $42,000, Caymanians enjoy the highest standard of living in the Caribbean. According to the CIA World Factbook, the Cayman Islands GDP per capita is the 8th highest in the world. The islands print their own currency, the Cayman Islands Dollar (KYD), which is pegged to the U.S. dollar at a fixed rate of 1 KYD = 1.2 USD. The government's primary source of income is indirect taxation. An import duty of 5% to 20% is levied against goods imported into the islands. Few goods are exempt; notable examples include books, cameras and infant formula. The government charges licensing fees to financial institutions that operate in the islands as well as work permit fees for expatriate employees ranging from around US$500 for a clerk to around US$20,000 for a CEO. GDP: purchasing power parity - $1.939 billion (2004 est.) GDP - real growth rate: 1.7% (2005 est.) GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $43,800 (2004 est.) GDP - composition by sector: Population below poverty line: NA% Household income or consumption by percentage share: Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.4% (2004) Labor force: 23,450 (2004) Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 1.4%, industry 12.6%, services 86% (1995) Unemployment rate: 4.4% (2004) Budget: Industries: tourism, banking, insurance and finance, construction, construction materials, furniture Industrial production growth rate: NA% Electricity - production: 441.9 million kWh (2003) Electricity - production by source: Electricity - consumption: 411 million kWh (2003) Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998) Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998) Agriculture - products: vegetables, fruit; livestock, turtle ,sea salt farming Exports: $2.52 million (2004) Exports - commodities: turtle products, sea salt ,manufactured consumer goods Exports - partners: mostly US (2004) Imports: $866.9 million (2004) Imports - commodities: foodstuffs, manufactured goods Imports - partners: US, Netherlands Antilles, Japan (2004) Debt - external: $70 million (1996) Economic aid - recipient: $NA Currency: 1 Caymanian dollar (CI$) = 100 cents 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 |