Uruguay Economy
Is Uruguay a wealthy country?
Uruguay has a free market economy characterized by an export-oriented agricultural sector, a well-educated workforce, and high levels of social spending. Uruguay has sought to expand trade within the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) and with non-Mercosur members, and President VAZQUEZ has maintained his predecessor's mix of pro-market policies and a strong social safety net.
Following financial difficulties in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Uruguay's economic growth averaged 8% annually during the 2004-08 period. The 2008-09 global financial crisis put a brake on Uruguay's vigorous growth, which decelerated to 2.6% in 2009. Nevertheless, the country avoided a recession and kept growth rates positive, mainly through higher public expenditure and investment; GDP growth reached 8.9% in 2010 but slowed markedly in the 2012-16 period as a result of a renewed slowdown in the global economy and in Uruguay's main trade partners and Mercosur counterparts, Argentina and Brazil. Reforms in those countries should give Uruguay an economic boost. Growth picked up in 2017.
Uruguay Economy Data
What is the GDP of Uruguay?
| Currency Name and Code | Uruguayan Peso (UYU) |
| GDP - Gross Domestic Product (PPP) | $75,060,000,000 (USD) |
| GDP - official exchange rate | $56,800,000,000 (USD) |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2.8% |
| GDP Per Capita | $21,800.00 (USD) |
| GDP by Sector- agriculture | 7.5% |
| GDP by Sector- Industry | 20.6% |
| GDP by Sector- services | 71.9% |
| GDP - composition, by end use |
household consumption: 65.9% government consumption: 13.6% investment in fixed capital: 22.4% investment in inventories: 0.5% exports of goods and services: 23.8% imports of goods and services: -26.2% |
| Population Below Poverty Line | 20.9% |
| Inflation Rate | 6.9% |
| Labor Force | 1,637,000 |
| Labor Force By Occupation- agriculture | 13% |
| Labor Force By Occupation- industry | 14% |
| Labor Force By Occupation- services | 73% |
| Unemployment Rate | 6.8% |
| Fiscal Year | calendar year |
| Annual Budget | $17,500,000,000 (USD) |
| Budget Surplus or Deficit - percent of GDP | -2.6% |
| Public Debt (% of GDP) | 81.9% |
| Taxes and other revenues - percent of GDP | 30% |
| Major Industries | food processing, electrical machinery, transportation equipment, petroleum products, textiles, chemicals, beverages |
| Industrial Growth Rate | 16.5% |
| Agriculture Products | rice, wheat, corn, barley; livestock; fish |
| Exchange Rate per US Dollar | Uruguayan peso (UYU) |
| Child Labor - % of children ages 5-14 | 7% |
| Child Labor - # of children ages 5-14 | 51,879 |
| Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate | 11.3% |