Virgin Islands Economy
Is Virgin Islands a wealthy country?
Tourism, trade, other services, and rum production are the primary economic activities of the US Virgin Islands (USVI), accounting for most of its GDP and employment. The USVI receives between 2.5 and 3 million tourists a year, mostly from visiting cruise ships. The islands are vulnerable to damage from storms, as evidenced by the destruction from two major hurricanes in 2017. Recovery and rebuilding have continued, but full recovery from these back-to-back hurricanes is years away. The USVI government estimates it will need $7.5 billion, almost twice the territory’s GDP, to rebuild the territory.
The agriculture sector is small and most food is imported. In 2016, government spending (both federal and territorial together) accounted for about 27% of GDP while exports of goods and services, including spending by tourists, accounted for nearly 47%. Federal programs and grants, including rum tax cover-over totaling $482.3 million in 2016, contributed 32.2% of the territory’s total revenues. The economy picked up 0.9% in 2016 and had appeared to be progressing before the 2017 hurricanes severely damaged the territory’s infrastructure and the economy.
Virgin Islands Economy Data
What is the GDP of Virgin Islands?
| Currency Name and Code | US Dollar (USD) |
| GDP - Gross Domestic Product (PPP) | $3,872,000,000 (USD) |
| GDP - official exchange rate | $5,075,000,000 (USD) |
| GDP - real growth rate | -5.4% |
| GDP Per Capita | $36,100.00 (USD) |
| GDP by Sector- agriculture | 2% |
| GDP by Sector- Industry | 20% |
| GDP by Sector- services | 78% |
| GDP - composition, by end use |
household consumption: 63.6% government consumption: 28% investment in fixed assets: 6.1% exports of goods and services: 69.3% imports of goods and services: 69.3% |
| Population Below Poverty Line | 28.9% |
| Inflation Rate | 2.2% |
| Labor Force | 49,820 |
| Labor Force By Occupation- agriculture | 1% |
| Labor Force By Occupation- industry | 19% |
| Labor Force By Occupation- services | 80% |
| Unemployment Rate | 6.2% |
| Fiscal Year | 1 October - 30 September |
| Annual Budget | $837,000,000 (USD) |
| Major Industries | tourism, petroleum refining, watch assembly, rum distilling, construction, pharmaceuticals, textiles, electronics |
| Agriculture Products | fruit, vegetables, sorghum; Senepol cattle |
| Exchange Rate per US Dollar | US dollar (USD) |