< Basic Info on Dominican Repubic

Main Crops: Sugarcane, coffee, cotton, cocoa, tobacco, rice, beans, potatoes, corn, bananas; cattle, pigs, dairy products, beef, eggs

Natural Resources: Nickel, bauxite, gold, silver .

Major Industries:
tourism, sugar processing, ferronickel and gold mining, textiles, cement, tobacco

 

The Dominican Republic was for most of its history primarily an exporter of sugar, coffee, and tobacco, but over the last three decades the economy has become more diversified as the service sector has overtaken agriculture as the economy's largest employer, due to growth in construction, tourism, and free trade zones. The mining sector has also played a greater role in the export market since late 2012 with the commencement of the extraction phase of the Pueblo Viejo Gold and Silver mine, one of the largest gold mines in the world.

For the last 20 years, the Dominican Republic has been one of the fastest growing economies in Latin America. The economy rebounded from the global recession in 2010-16, and the fiscal situation is improving. A tax reform package passed in November 2012, a reduction in government spending, and lower energy costs helped to narrow the central government budget deficit from 6.6% of GDP in 2012 to 2.6% in 2016, and public debt is declining. Marked income inequality, high unemployment, and underemployment remain important long-term challenges; the poorest half of the population receives less than one-fifth of GDP, while the richest 10% enjoys nearly 40% of GDP.

The economy is highly dependent upon the US, the destination for approximately half of exports and the source of 40% of imports. Remittances from the US amount to about 7% of GDP, equivalent to about a third of exports and two-thirds of tourism receipts. The Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement came into force in March 2007, boosting investment and manufacturing exports.

1990 2000 2010 2020
GNI, Atlas method (current US$) (billions) 6.23 22.73 51.64 78.79
GNI per capita, Atlas method (current US$) 870 2,680 5,330 7,260
GNI, PPP (current international $) (billions) 25.28 54.86 106.66 196.19
GNI per capita, PPP (current international $) 3,540 6,480 11,000 18,270
GDP (current US$) (billions) 7.07 24.31 53.86 78.84
GDP growth (annual %) -5.5 4.7 8.3 -6.7
Inflation, GDP deflator (annual %) 50.5 7.2 5.4 4.7
Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (% of GDP) 13 7 6 6
Industry (including construction), value added (% of GDP) 30 32 28 30
Exports of goods and services (% of GDP) 31 35 23 18
Imports of goods and services (% of GDP) 39 44 33 26
Gross capital formation (% of GDP) 23 28 26 25
Revenue, excluding grants (% of GDP) 12 13.8 13.8 15.5
Net lending (+) / net borrowing (-) (% of GDP) 0.6 0.8 -2.8 -2
States and markets
Time required to start a business (days) .. 79 15 17
Domestic credit provided by financial sector (% of GDP) .. .. 39.6 55.3
Tax revenue (% of GDP) 10.3 12.2 12.2 13.3
Military expenditure (% of GDP) 0.7 1 0.7 0.8
Mobile cellular subscriptions (per 100 people) 0 8.3 91.7 82.9
Individuals using the Internet (% of population) 0 3.7 31.4 75.8
High-technology exports (% of manufactured exports) .. .. 2 7
Statistical Capacity Score (Overall Average) (scale 0 - 100) .. .. 68 72
Global links
Merchandise trade (% of GDP) 73 63 41 35
Net barter terms of trade index (2000 = 100) 96 100 102 109
External debt stocks, total (DOD, current US$) (millions) 4,485 4,618 13,499 44,468
Total debt service (% of exports of goods, services and primary income) 12.5 8.5 11.2 45
Net migration (thousands) -144 -153 -153 -150
Personal remittances, received (current US$) (millions) 315 1,839 3,887 8,332
Foreign direct investment, net inflows (BoP, current US$) (millions) 133 989 1,820 2,829
Net official development assistance received (current US$) (millions) 90.9 61.3 193.8 134.4