Rank and Economics

The rank of Belize from the poorest is 113 and from the richest is 90 in atlas method measured in 2003. In other measurement such as IMF,WB and CIA measured in 2007,2007, and 2008 in nominal method;
IMF.........................................WB.............................................CIA
rank/measure..........................rank/measure................................rank/measure
84/4,108................................72/4,191....................................83/4,324

Economy of Belize
Belize City
Rank	180th
Currency	1 Belize dollar (BZD)
Fiscal year	1 April – 31 March
Trade organisations	CARICOM, WTO
Statistics
GDP	$2.896 billion (2012 est.)
GDP growth	2.3% (2012 est.)
GDP per capita	$8,400 (2012 est.)
GDP by sector	Agriculture (9.7%), industry (19.4%), services (59%) (2012 est.)
Inflation (CPI)	2.8% (2012 est.)
Population below poverty line	33.5% (2002 est.)
Labour force	120,500 (2008 est.) note: shortage of skilled labor and all types of technical personnel
Labour force by occupation	Agriculture (10.2%), industry (18.1%), services (71.7%) (2007 est.)
Unemployment	23.1% (2010)
Main industries	Garment production, food processing, tourism, construction, oil
Ease of Doing Business Rank	93rd
External
Exports	$555.8 million (2012 est.)
Export goods	Sugar, bananas, citrus, clothing, fish products, molasses, wood, crude oil
Main export partners	United States 30.8%  United Kingdom 21.2%  Nigeria 4.8%  Costa Rica 4.1% (2012 est.)
Import goods	Machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, fuels, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, food, beverages, tobacco
Main import partners	United States 23.1%  Germany 14.6%  Mexico 11.2%  Cuba 9.1%  Guatemala 5.4%  China 4.5%  Trinidad and Tobago 4.1% (2012 est.)
Gross external debt	$1.362 billion (2004

Belize has a small, essentially private enterprise economy that is based primarily on agriculture, tourism, and services. The cultivation of newly discovered crude oil in the town of Spanish Lookout has presented new prospects and problems for this developing nation. Besides petroleum, Belize's other primary exports are citrus, sugar, and bananas. Belize's trade deficit has been growing, mostly as a result of low export prices for sugar and bananas.^{[citation needed]} The new government faces important challenges to economic stability. Rapid action to improve tax collection has been promised, but a lack of progress in reining in spending could bring the exchange rate under pressure. The Belize Dollar is fixed to the U.S. dollar at a rate of 2:1.
Domestic industry is limited, constrained by relatively high-cost labour and energy and a small domestic market. Tourism attracts the most foreign direct investment although significant foreign investment is also found in the energy, telecommunications, and agricultural sectors.
Belize's economic performance is highly susceptible to external market changes. Although moderate growth has been achieved in recent years, the achievements are vulnerable to world commodity price fluctuations and continuation of preferential trading agreements, especially with the U.S. (cane sugar) and UK (bananas).
Belize continues to rely heavily on foreign trade with the United States as its number one trading partner. Total imports in 2000 totaled $446 million while total exports were only $349.9 million. In 2000, the U.S. accounted for 48.5% of Belize's total exports and provided 49.7% of all Belizean imports. Other major trading partners include the European Union, Canada, Mexico, and Caribbean Community (CARICOM) member states.

Belize aims to stimulate the growth of commercial agriculture through CARICOM. However, Belizean trade with the rest of the Caribbean is small compared to that with the United States and Europe. The country is a beneficiary of the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI), a U.S. Government program to stimulate investment in Caribbean nations by providing duty-free access to the U.S. market for most Caribbean products. Significant U.S. private investments in citrus and shrimp farms have been made in Belize under CBI. U.S. trade preferences allowing for duty-free re-import of finished apparel cut from U.S. textiles have significantly expanded the apparel industry. EU and UK preferences also have been vital for the expansion and prosperity of the sugar and banana industries.