The highly industrialized economy of the Principality of Liechtenstein
is characterized by a broad diversification of sectors, businesses, and products. The average added
value is very high, based on research and development, qualified expertise, a wide range of high-tech
and niche products, strong export orientation, and a highly developed financial services sector. The
gross domestic product (GDP) of 5.00 billion Swiss francs (2006) is, however, 100 to 1000 times smaller
in absolute terms than the GDP of Switzerland or Germany.
About 40% of GDP is covered by added value in industry and manufacturing,
29% in the financial services sector, 24% in general services (i.e. tourism, services for companies,
real estate and information technology, cleaning and repair services, and retail), and the remainder
of 7% in agriculture and households.
Statistics on the 10 most important branches of the economy are
available here
The employment numbers in Liechtenstein are extraordinarily high.
With a population of 35,600, there are 33,600 jobs. This is only possible because the number of cross-border
commuters to Liechtenstein is many times higher than the number of cross-border commuters from Liechtenstein.
About 16,250 people from the region (Austria, Switzerland and Germany)
commute daily to their workplace in Liechtenstein. This is about 45% of the total employment. As of
31 December 2007, jobs were distributed as follows: 55,4% commerce and services, 43,5% industry and
manufacturing, and 1,1% agriculture and forestry. In an international comparison, the very low proportion
of agriculture and forestry is striking, as is the relatively high proportion of the manufacturing sector.
The service sector is considerably smaller than in comparable countries in Europe.
The unemployment rate in Liechtenstein is traditionally very low;
the maximum rate so far has been 2.5%.
According to the new definition (effective 1 January 2007), unemployed
persons with compensatory work are no longer considered unemployed. The unemployment statistics using
this new definition can be accessed here
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