French Polynesia (Polynesia) Economic Statistics and Indicators

18, Sep 2019, EDT. Welcome to the French Polynesia economic statistics pages provided by the beta version of EconomyWatch.com's Econ Stats database.

Economic Indicators For: French Polynesia (Polynesia) › Change country
National or Regional Currency: Pacific Franc, XPF
Year of data: 2015 › Change year
Number of Indicators Listed:
Full Dataset: From Year 1980 to 2019
Date of Last Update: 17th March 2015
Population: 280,026 (July 2014 est.)
Area: total: 4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls) ; land: 3,827 sq km ; water: 340 sq km
Natural Resources: timber, fish, cobalt, hydropower
Capital: name: Papeete (located on Tahiti) ; geographic coordinates: 17 32 S, 149 34 W ; time difference: UTC-10 (5 hours behind Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

Since 1962, when France stationed military personnel in the region, French Polynesia has changed from a subsistence agricultural economy to one in which a high proportion of the work force is either employed by the military or supports the tourist industry. With the halt of French nuclear testing in 1996, the military contribution to the economy fell sharply. Tourism accounts for about one-fourth of GDP and is a primary source of hard currency earnings. Other sources of income are handicrafts, public works projects, aquaculture, pearl farming and deep-sea commercial fishing. The small manufacturing sector primarily processes agricultural products. The territory benefits substantially from development agreements with France aimed principally at creating new businesses and strengthening social services.

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