The Safest Countries in the World 2017
The Global Finance ranking of World's Safest Countries incorporates three measures of security and safety, factoring natural disaster risk with measures of peace and crime.
Belgium GDP and Economic Data
Country Report 2017 - Includes Belgium real Gross Domestic Product growth rate, with latest forecasts and historical data, GDP per capita, GDP composition and breakdown by sector.
Browse additional economic indicators and data sets, selected by Global Finance editors, to learn more about Belgium economic outlook, debt to GDP ratio, international trade performance and population trends. Rankings of Belgium best banks and safest banks are also available.
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International Reserves
USD 15.4 billion (2016)
International Monetary Fund (IMF), data retrieved January 2017
Gross Domestic Product - GDP
USD 488.7 billion (2017, estimate)
GDP (Purchasing Power Parity)
Intl$ 526.6 billion (2017, estimate)
Real GDP growth
| 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 |
| 2.5% | 3.4% | 0.8% | -2.3% | 2.7% | 1.8% | 0.2% |
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* | ||
| 0% | 1.3% | 1.4% | 1.5% | 1.4% |
*Estimate
GDP per capita - current prices
USD 42,661.8 (2017, estimate)
GDP (PPP) - share of world total
| 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2017* |
| 0.83% | 0.74% | 0.62% | 0.49% | 0.4% |
*Estimate
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GDP - composition by sector
- agriculture: 0.6%
- industry: 21.8%
- services: 77.6%
(2016 estimate)
Gross domestic expenditure on R&D; (% of GDP)
2.5% (2014)
OECD, data retrieved January 2017
Inflation
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* |
| 1.2% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 2.1% | 1.6% |
*Estimate
Unemployment rate
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* |
| 8.5% | 8.6% | 8.5% | 8.4% | 8.3% |
*Estimate
Public debt (General government gross debt as a % of GDP)
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* |
| 105.2% | 106.6% | 106.1% | 105.8% | 105% |
*Estimate
Public deficit (General government net lending/borrowing as a % of GDP)
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* | 2017* |
| -3% | -3.1% | -2.6% | -2.7% | -2.2% |
*Estimate
Government bond ratings
Standard & Poor's: AA
Moody's: Aa3
Standard & Poor's / Moody's (Updated January 2017)
Source
Market value of publicly traded shares
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| USD 374.3 billion | USD 378.5 billion | USD 414.6 billion |
*Estimate
Largest companies
Anheuser-Busch InBev, KBC Group, Solvay, Delhaize Group, Belgacom, Colruyt, UCB, Dexia, Umicore, Banque Nationale de Belgique.
Source
Source
Current account balance by percentage of GDP
0.4% (2017 estimate)
Exports as percent of GDP (Exports of goods and services)
82.9% (2015)
Shares in world total merchandising export
2.4% (2015)
Shares in world total commercial services export
2.3% (2015)
Export commodities
Chemicals, machinery and equipment, finished diamonds, metals and metal products, foodstuffs
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Import commodities
Raw materials, machinery and equipment, chemicals, raw diamonds, pharmaceuticals, foodstuffs, transportation equipment, oil products
Exports - major partners
Germany 16.9%, France 15.5%, Netherlands 11.4%, UK 8.8%, US 6%, Italy 5% (2015)
Imports - major partners
Netherlands 16.7%, Germany 12.7%, France 9.6%, US 8.7%, UK 5.1%, Ireland 4.7%, China 4.3% (2015)
FDI inflows
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| USD 13,682 million | USD -8,703 million | USD 31,029 million |
FDI outflows
| 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| USD 18,161 million | USD 5,010 million | USD 38,547 million |
Value of cross-border M&A, by country of purchaser
| 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 |
| USD -1353.9 million | USD 13250.8 million | USD 4459.7 million | USD 5538.8 million |
Cross-border M&A deals worth over $3 billion completed in 2014
Anheuser-Busch Inbev, Oriental Brewery Co Ltd, Korea, Republic of, USD 5.8 billion
(for a monthly update on M&A; click here )
Cross-border M&A deals worth over $3 billion completed in 2015
Solvay SA, Cytec Industries Inc, United States, USD 5.5 billion
(for a monthly update on M&A; click here )
Best countries for doing business
Economies are ranked on their ease of doing business. A high ease of doing business ranking means the regulatory environment is more conducive to the starting and operation of a local firm.
Overall ranking: 42 out of 190 countries (2016)
Subcategories:
Starting a business: 17 out of 190 countries
Enforcing Contracts: 52 out of 190 countries
Registering Property: 131 out of 190 countries
Getting credit: 101 out of 190 countries
Protecting investors: 63 out of 190 countries
Trading across border: 1 out of 190 countries
Paying Taxes: 66 out of 190 countries
Dealing with Construction Permits: 44 out of 190 countries
Getting Electricity: 60 out of 190 countries
Resolving Insolvency: 10 out of 190 countries
Source
Global competitiveness ranking
17 out of 138 countries
(2016-2017)
Index of Economic Freedom
Ranking: 44 / Score: 68.41 (Moderately free) (2017)
(100=totally free 0=totally repressed)
Source
Source
Government type
Federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy
Languages
Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%
Total population
| 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2016* | 2021* |
| 9.948 million | 10.239 million | 10.84 million | 11.332 million | 11.93 million |
*Estimate
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Urban population as % of total population
| 1960 | 1980 | 2000 | 2015 |
| 93% | 95% | 97% | 98% |
Inequality of wealth distribution (Gini index)
27.6 (2012)
(0=perfect equality, 100=absolute inequality)
Source
Freedom House rating
Political Rights: 1
Civil Liberties: 1 (2014)
(1 represents the most free, 7 the least free)
Source
Total telephone subscribers as % of population
Fixed 40.14% Mobile 115.69% (2015)
(fixed-telephone subscribers and mobile-cellular subscribers)