Exporting

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The lands that today comprise Croatia were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the close of World War I. In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became a federal independent communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands, along with a majority of Croatia's ethnic Serb population. Under UN supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. The country joined NATO in April 2009 and the EU in July 2013.

Location

Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia

Natural Resources

oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, gypsum, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower

Population - distribution

more of the population lives in the northern half of the country, with approximately a quarter of the populace residing in and around the capital of Zagreb; many of the islands are sparsely populated

4284889
Croatian (official) 95.6%, Serbian 1.2%, other 3% (including Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and Albanian), unspecified 0.2% (2011 est.)
ZAGREB (capital) 687,000 (2015)
Conventional long form
Republic of Croatia
Conventional short form
Croatia
Local long form
Republika Hrvatska
Local short form
Hrvatska
parliamentary republic
Name
Zagreb
Geographic coordinates
45 48 N, 16 00 E
Time difference
UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
Though still one of the wealthiest of the former Yugoslav republics, Croatia's economy suffered badly during the 1991-95 war. The country's output during that time collapsed, and Croatia missed the early waves of investment in Central and Eastern Europe that followed the fall of the Berlin Wall. Between 2000 and 2007, however, Croatia's economic fortunes began to improve with moderate but steady GDP growth between 4% and 6%, led by a rebound in tourism and credit-driven consumer spending. Inflation over the same period remained tame and the currency, the kuna, stable.
Inflation
-1.125%
Total tax rate (% of commercial profits)
20.9%
Real Interest Rate
6.933%
Manufacturing, value added (% of GDP)
14.614%
Current Account Balance
US$ 2,491,562,517
Labor Force, Total
1,855,492
Employment in Agriculture
9.16%
Employment in Industry
26.79%
Employment in Services
63.88%
Unemployment Rate
13.48%
Imports of goods and services
US$ 24,313,342,272
Exports of goods and services
US$ 25,919,846,929
Total Merchandise Trade
70.25%
FDI, net inflows
US$ 158,968,738
Commercial Service Exports
US$ 12,480,697,792
arable crops (wheat, corn, barley, sugar beet, sunflower, rapeseed, alfalfa, clover); vegetables (potatoes, cabbage, onion, tomato, pepper); fruits (apples, plum, mandarins, olives), grapes for wine; livestock (cattle, cows, pigs); dairy products
chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages, tourism
Commodities
transport equipment, machinery, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels
Partners
Italy 13.4%, Slovenia 12.5%, Germany 11.4%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 9.9%, Austria 6.6%, Serbia 4.9% (2015)
Commodities
machinery, transport and electrical equipment; chemicals, fuels and lubricants; foodstuffs
Partners
Germany 15.5%, Italy 13.1%, Slovenia 10.7%, Austria 9.2%, Hungary 7.8% (2015)
Country Risk Rating
B
Political and economic uncertainties and an occasionally difficult business environment can affect corporate payment behavior. Corporate default probability is appreciable.
Business Climate Rating
A3
The business environment is relatively good. Although not always available, corporate financial information is usually reliable. Debt collection and the institutional framework may have some shortcomings. Intercompany transactions may run into occasional difficulties in the otherwise secure environments rated A3.
  • Advanced social convergence: per capita GDP (as PPP) = 63% of European average
  • Hydroelectricity covering 75% of electrical power needs
  • Tourist attractiveness and long coastline
  • Oil and gas potential
  • Kuna pegged to euro
  • High-quality infrastructures
  • Weak industrial development/lack of competitiveness
  • Low sophistication of exports which represent only 24% of GDP
  • Mass tourism
  • Large informal economy
  • High external private debt
  • Little leeway on fiscal and monetary policy (strong euroization)
  • Poor absorption of European funds/poor local management
  • High unemployment rate (15%, 44% among young people) and low activity rates (50%)

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