Andrew Lamotte Economic Map Project: El Salvador

Economic Data for Country: GDP: $21.7 billion GDP Per Capita: $7,200 Growth Rate: 0.7% Unemployment Rate: 7.2% Population Below Poverty: 37.8% Exports: $4.58 billion Imports: $8.19 billion National Debt: $11.92 billion El Salvador is the smallest, geographically, Central American country in the region, but has the third largest economy. Its economic outlook for growth, 0.7 percent, reflects the estimated growth for 2010; which is before their economy began its recovery from the world wide recession. El Salvador has a negative net loss on imports with imports nearly 180% of export revenue. El Salvador was the first country to ratify CAFTA-DR, a free trade agreement to boast local trade in the region. Its main trading partner is the United States, with more than 40% of exports and more than 30% of imports being made with them. It has attempted to reduce poverty in the country by increasing employment through spurring the economy. They have taken three major steps by adopting the U.S. dollar in 2001, pursuit of trade agreements, and applying for the Millennium fund. Though the government has lost the power to make monetary policy, the possibility of infusion of foreign investment are greatly increased with the use of a stable currency.