Economy — Laos
GDP, employment, industries, public finance, and currency.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Economy at a glance
GDP, employment, industries, public finance, and currency. Key figure for Laos: The government of Laos, one of the few remaining one-party communist states, began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986. Economic growth averaged more than 6% per year in the period 1988-2008, and Laos' growth has more recently been amongst the fastest in Asia, averaging more than 7% per y…
Immigration rules and fees change frequently — confirm current requirements on official government or embassy websites.
Economic overview
- Economic Overview
The government of Laos, one of the few remaining one-party communist states, began decentralizing control and encouraging private enterprise in 1986.
Economic growth averaged more than 6% per year in the period 1988-2008, and Laos' growth has more recently been amongst the fastest in Asia, averaging more than 7% per year for most of the last decade.
Nevertheless, Laos remains a country with an underdeveloped infrastructure, particularly in rural areas.
It has a basic, but improving, road system, and limited external and internal land-line telecommunications.
Electricity is available to 83% of the population.
Agriculture, dominated by rice cultivation in lowland areas, accounts for about 20% of GDP and 73% of total employment.
Recently, the country has faced a persistent current account deficit, falling foreign currency reserves, and growing public debt.
Laos' economy is heavily dependent on capital-intensive natural resource exports.
The economy has benefited from high-profile foreign direct investment in hydropower dams along the Mekong River, copper and gold mining, logging, and construction, although some projects in these industries have drawn criticism for their environmental impacts.
Laos gained Normal Trade Relations status with the US in 2004 and applied for Generalized System of Preferences trade benefits in 2013 after being admitted to the World Trade Organization earlier in the year.
Laos held the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2016.
Laos is in the process of implementing a value-added tax system.
The government appears committed to raising the country's profile among foreign investors and has developed special economic zones replete with generous tax incentives, but a limited labor pool, a small domestic market, and corruption remain impediments to investment.
Laos also has ongoing problems with the business environment, including onerous registration requirements, a gap between legislation and implementation, and unclear or conflicting regulations.
- Industries
tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism
- GDP - per capita (PPP)
$5,400.00 (USD)
- GDP - real growth rate
7.5%
GDP & growth
- GDP - Gross Domestic Product (PPP)
$56,790,000,000 (USD)
- GDP Per Capita
$5,400.00 (USD)
- GDP - real growth rate
7.5%
- GDP - official exchange rate
$12,550,000,000 (USD)
- GDP - composition, by end use
- household consumption: 58.2%
- government consumption: 14.4%
- investment in fixed capital: 36.6%
- investment in inventories: 1.6%
- exports of goods and services: 42.9%
- imports of goods and services: -53.7%
- GDP by Sector- agriculture
23.1%
- GDP by Sector- Industry
33.4%
- GDP by Sector- services
43.5%
- Industrial Growth Rate
17.7%
Prices & money
- Inflation Rate
6%
- Exchange Rate per US Dollar
kip (LAK)
- Currency Name and Code
Kip (LAK)
- Fiscal Year
1 October - 30 September
- Commercial Bank Prime Lending Rate
23.2%
Employment & labor
- Labor Force
3,690,000
- Unemployment Rate
2.5%
- Major Industries
tin and gypsum mining, timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism
- Agriculture Products
sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice, water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry
- Population Below Poverty Line
26%
- Child Labor - # of children ages 5-14
175,138
- Child Labor - % of children ages 5-14
11%
Public finance
- Annual Budget
$1,137,000,000 (USD)
- Budget Surplus or Deficit - percent of GDP
-1.6%
- Taxes and other revenues - percent of GDP
24.6%
