Economy of American Samoa

Economy of American Samoa
CurrencyUS dollar (USD)
1 October – 30 September
Trade organizations
none
Statistics
GDP$636 million (2018)
GDP rank187th (nominal) / 190th (PPP)
GDP growth
2.2% (2018)
GDP per capita
$11,467 (2018)
GDP by sector
NA
NA
Population below poverty line
NA
Labor force
17,630 (2007)
Labor force by occupation
agriculture 34%, industry 33%, services 33% (1990)
Unemployment8.36% (2020)
Main industries
tuna canneries (largely dependent on foreign fishing vessels), handicrafts
External
Exports$69.9 million (2018)
Export goods
canned tuna 93% (2004)
Main export partners
  •  Australia 33.1%
  •  South Korea 15.6%
  •  Taiwan 8.09%
  •  Kuwait 7.68% (2022)[1]
Imports$147 million (2018)
Import goods
materials for canneries 56%, food 8%, petroleum products 7%, machinery and parts 6% (2004)
Main import partners
  •  Malaysia 27.2%
  •  Singapore 23.8%
  •  Fiji 11.9%
  •  South Korea 9.36%
  •  Taiwan 9.04%
  •  New Zealand 8.13% (2022)[2]
Public finances
69.5 million (2015)
Revenues$121 million (37% in local revenue and 63% in US grants) (1997)
Expenses$127 million (1997)
Economic aidmore than $40 million from US in financial support (1994)
All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars.

The economy of American Samoa is a traditional Polynesian economy in which more than 90% of the land is communally owned.[3] American Samoa is an unincorporated territory of the United States; economic activity is strongly linked to the main customs zone of the U.S., with which American Samoa conducts the great bulk of its trade. Tuna fishing and processing plants are the backbone of the private sector, with canned tuna being the primary export. Transfers from the U.S. federal government add substantially to American Samoa's economic well-being. Attempts by the government to develop a larger and broader economy are restrained by Samoa's remote location, its limited transportation, and its devastating hurricanes.

A StarKist tuna cannery. Tuna canning represents a major export industry in the territory
  1. ^ "Export Partners of the American Samoa". The Observatory of Economic Complexity. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Import Partners of the American Samoa". The Observatory of Economic Complexity. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference FEMA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).