The economy of Croatia is a developed social market economy. It is one of the largest economies in Southeast Europe by nominal gross domestic product (GDP). It is an open economy with accommodative foreign policy, highly dependent on international trade in Europe. Within Croatia, economic development varies among its counties, with strongest growth in Central Croatia and its financial centre, Zagreb. It has a very high level of human development, low levels of wealth inequality, and a high standard of living. Croatia's labor market has been perennially inefficient, with inconsistent business standards as well as ineffective corporate and income tax policy.
Top Sectors in Croatia
Tourism in Croatia
Tourism is a notable source of income during the summer and a major industry in Croatia. It dominates the Croatian service sector and accounts for up to 20% of Croatian GDP. Annual tourist industry income for 2011 was estimated at €6.61 billion. Its positive effects are felt throughout the economy of Croatia in terms of increased business volume observed in retail business, processing industry orders and summer seasonal employment. The industry is considered an export business, because it significantly reduces the country's external trade imbalance. Since the conclusion of the Croatian War of Independence, the tourist industry has grown rapidly, recording a fourfold rise in tourist numbers, with more than 10 million tourists each year. The most numerous are tourists from Germany, Slovenia, Austria and the Czech Republic as well as Croatia itself. Length of a tourist stay in Croatia averages 4.9 days.
Agriculture in Croatia
Croatian agricultural sector subsists from exports of blue water fish, which in recent years experienced a tremendous surge in demand, mainly from Japan and South Korea. Croatia is a notable producer of organic foods and much of it is exported to the European Union. Croatian wines, olive oil and lavender are particularly sought after. Value of Croatia's agriculture sector is around 3.1 billion according to preliminary data released by the national statistics office. Croatia has around 1.72 million hectares of agricultural land, however totally utilized land for agricultural in 2020 was around 1.506 million hectares, of these permanent pasture land constituted 536 000 hectares or some 35.5% of total land available to agriculture. Croatia imports a significant quantity of fruits and olive oil, despite having large domestic production of the same. In terms of livestock Croatian agriculture had some 15.2 million poultry, 453 000 Cattle, 802 000 Sheep, 1.157 000 Pork/Pigs, 88 000 Goats. Croatia also produced 67 000 tons of blue fish, some 9000 of these are Tuna fish, which are farmed and exported to Japan, South Korea and the United States.
Transportation in Croatia
The highlight of Croatia's recent infrastructure developments is its rapidly developed motorway network, largely built in the late 1990s and especially in the 2000s. Croatia had completed more than 1,300 kilometres (810 miles) of motorways, connecting Zagreb to most other regions and following various European routes and four Pan-European corridors. The busiest motorways are the A1, connecting Zagreb to Split and the A3, passing east-west through northwest Croatia and Slavonia. A widespread network of state roads in Croatia acts as motorway feeder roads while connecting all major settlements in the country. The high quality and safety levels of the Croatian motorway network were tested and confirmed by several EuroTAP and EuroTest programs.
07 Nov 2024
22 Nov 2024
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