• GDP: US$15.4 billion.
• Main imports: Citrus, grapes, wine, potatoes, pharmaceuticals, clothing and footwear.
• Main exports: Consumer goods, raw materials, petroleum and lubricants, food and feed grains.
• Main trade partners: EU (especially UK, Greece, Italy and Germany), Lebanon, Egypt, Gulf States, Libya and Russia.

Tourism is the main component of the southern service economy but, in recent years, financial services – including ‘offshore’ enterprises – have also assumed an important role. The UK’s sovereign military bases on the southern coast and near the partition boundary are a major source of revenue for the south. Economic development of the northern occupied part of Cyprus has been severely limited by lack of diplomatic recognition and it continues to rely heavily on economic support from Turkey. The profile of the northern occupied part of Cyprus's agricultural sector is similar to that of the south; manufacturing is relatively insignificant; tourism relies heavily on visitors from the Turkish mainland. Both parts of the island rely on imported raw fuels for their energy supplies. The decision of the north to allow visits across the partition may presage the development of a cross-border economy, but this may take some time. This concession on the part of the north was driven mainly by the acceptance of the south into the European Union in 2004. Turkey, which ultimately controls the fate of the northern part of Cyprus, is an aspirant member of the EU, and a solution to the present division of the island is an essential precursor to their own accession.

Many quality hotels have first class conference facilities; Nicosia is a popular destination for budget-priced conferences and has a number of modern facilities. Advice can be obtained from the Cyprus Tourism Organisation.

Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry
38 Grivas Digenis Avenue, Chamber Building, PO Box 21455, 1509 Nicosia
Tel: (22) 889 800.
Website: www.ccci.org.cy.