Economy - overview The government has embraced free-market economics, freezing spending, easing price controls, liberalizing domestic and international trade. Mongolia's severe climate, scattered population, and wide expanses of unproductive land, however, have constrained economic development. Economic activity traditionally has been based on agriculture and the breeding of livestock. In past years, extensive mineral resources had been developed with Soviet support; total Soviet assistance at its height amounted to 30% of GDP, but disappeared almost overnight in 1990-91. The mining and processing of coal, copper, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and gold account for a large part of industrial production. The Mongolian leadership has been soliciting support from foreign donors, who pledged some $250 million in aid in October 1997. Economic growth picked up in 1997 after stalling in 1996 due to a series of natural disasters and declines in world prices of copper and cashmere.

GDP purchasing power parity - $5.6 billion (1997 est.)

GDP - real growth rate 3.3% (1997 est.)

GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $2,200 (1997 est.)

GDP - composition by sector
agriculture: 34%
industry: 32%
services: 34% (1995 est.)

Inflation rate - consumer price index 17.5% (1997 est.)

Labor force
total: 1.115 million (mid-1993 est.)
by occupation: primarily herding/agricultural

Unemployment rate 15% (1997 est.)

Budget
revenues: $NA
expenditures: $NA

Industries copper, construction materials, mining (particularly coal); food and beverage, processing of animal products

Industrial production growth rate 4.5% (1997 est.)

Electricity - capacity 901,000 kW (1995)

Electricity - production 3.15 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity - consumption per capita 1,303 kWh (1995)

Agriculture - products wheat, barley, potatoes, forage crops; sheep, goats, cattle, camels, horses

Exports
total value: $418 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
commodities: copper, livestock, animal products, cashmere, wool, hides, fluorspar, other nonferrous metals
partners: Russia 21%, China 18% (1996)

Imports
total value: $443.4 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
commodities: machinery and equipment, fuels, food products, industrial consumer goods, chemicals, building materials, sugar, tea
partners: Russia 34%, China 15% (1996)

Debt - external $500 million (1996 est.)

Economic aid
recipient: ODA $250 million (1998 est.)

Currency 1 tughrik (Tug) = 100 mongos

Exchange rates tughriks (Tug) per US$1 - 812.09 (December 1997), 789.99 (1997), 548.40 (1996), 448.61 (1995), 412.72 (1994)

Fiscal year calendar year

NOTE: The information regarding Mongolia on this page is re-published from the 1998 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Mongolia Economy 1998 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Mongolia Economy 1998 should be addressed to the CIA.