Argentina has a land mass of 2.8 million sq. km and a population of 36 million, 87% of whom live in cities and towns. Most of the people of Argentina are of Spanish and Italian ancestry who arrived in large migrations between 1870 and 1950.
According to the World Bank, Argentina is an "upper-middle-income" developing country. The Heritage Foundation ranks Argentina 34th out of 160 countries in terms of economic freedom. The Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perceptions Index ranks Argentina 61st out of 85 countries.
Argentina was the world's fourth richest country in the 1930s, and at that time Argentina had a standard of living equal to that of the United States and most of Europe. Argentina eventually declined into isolationism after the Second World War. President Carlos Menem, who brought a free market system to Argentina, leaves office this year after ten years of service.
GDP for 1998 was $344.2 billion and is forecast to reach $545 billion in 2005. Per capita income in 1998 was $9530 and the foreign debt $119 billion. Argentina's government consumes an estimated 15% of GDP. From 1986 to 1996, Argentina had an average inflation rate of more than 300%, compared with today's 1%.
Argentina has a vehicle fleet of approximately 6 million units. Vehicle production in Argentina for 1997 was 450,000 units.
The automotive industry was established in the 1950s. Manufacturers such as Chrysler, General Motors, and Citroen closed their doors and left Argentina in the 1970s. In 1990, Volkswagen and Ford still had subsidiaries along with Renault, Fiat, and Peugeot. Later on, General Motors, Chrysler and Toyota entered the market. About $3.3 billion in new automotive industry investment was made between 1990 and 1997.
Passenger Car Production, by Manufacturer
| Manufacturer |
1998 |
2003 |
| Fiat |
60,000 |
65,000 |
| Ford |
60,000 |
75,000 |
| Renault |
52,000 |
100,000 |
| Peugeot |
18,000 |
40,000 |
| Volkswagen |
65,000 |
110,000 |
| Total |
255,000 |
390,000 |
|
OEM Investments
| Company |
Current investment ($ millions) |
Plans |
| Chrysler |
100 |
plant to produce 6000 Jeeps/yr. |
| Ciadea |
200 |
refurbishment & capacity expansion |
| Dina |
50 |
new truck factory |
| Fiat |
600 |
new car plant 200,000/yr. |
| Ford |
1000 |
refurbishment & expansion |
| General Motors |
1000 |
new plant |
| Iveco |
n/a |
refurbishment of plant |
| Mercedes-Benz |
100 |
refurbish truck plant |
| Scania |
300 |
new production line for trucks |
| Sevel |
300 |
modernization & expansion |
| Toyota |
100 |
new plant pickups 20,000/yr. |
| Volkswagen |
500 |
new plant |
| Total |
3950 |
|
|
Country profiles were provided by Raymond Champagne
