A Quick Peek Inside The Economic Landscape Of The Middle East

Reuters has published statistics that shows a clear picture of the economic landscape of countries in the Middle East.

Even though Libya has a population of just 6.6 million people, the country is responsible for more than 2 percent of all global oil production. Libya's inflation is low at 3.5 percent, but its unemployment rate bests all Middle East countries but Yemen with 30 percent (Yemen comes in at 35 percent). Despite the rampant unemployment, Libya features a per capita GDP of almost $13,000, therefore, the country likely faces severe income inequalities, which sounds like a recipe for social unrest.

Egypt is the largest Middle East country by population, with nearly 80 million citizens. Egypt's economy has grown YoY by 5.5 percent, but its per capita GDP is just $3,000. Egypt is one of the younger Middle Eastern countries with a median age of 24 and its unemployment rate is similar to the United States at 9 percent, although inflation has weighed on the economy at 10 percent. Egypt has a technologically more advanced culture as 16.6 percent of its population uses the internet, compared with just 5.1 percent for Libya. Bahrain is the most internet savvy Middle East nation among those countries included, with 51.9 percent of its population wired into the world wide web.

Saudia Arabia comes in as a relatively wealthy country compared to its peers with per capita GDP of about $17,840. Its GDP has risen YoY by 4.5 percent, and the Saudi population of nearly 26.7 million has seen similar unemployment to Egypt at a rate of about 10.8 percent. Its inflation comes in at 5.3 percent while the country is responsible for a full 11.6 percent of global oil production, making them one of the most important oil producers in the world. About 31 percent of Saudis are internet users.

For the full list of statistics, http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/11/02/MiddleEast.html">visit Reuters for country comparisons.