Belgium

Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830; it was occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. The country prospered in the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy.

Main Airports

Brussels South Charleroi (CRL), Brussels Zaventem (BRU)

U.S. Embassy

27 Boulevard du Régent, 1000 Brussels
tel. 02/501-2111

Statistics

GDP: purchasing power parity:

$325 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:

1.5% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity:

31,400 (2005 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):

2.8% (2005 est.)

Labor force:

4.77 million (2005 est.)

Exports:

$269.6 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - partners:

Germany 19.4%, France 17.3%, Netherlands 11.7%, UK 8.2%, US 6.4%, Italy 5.3% (2005)

Imports:

$264.5 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - partners:

Netherlands 17.8%, Germany 17.2%, France 11.4%, UK 6.8%, Ireland 6.5%, US 5.4% (2005)

Population:

10,379,067 (July 2006 est.)

Population growth rate:

0.13% (2006 est.)

Population Below Poverty Line:

4% (1989 est.)

Major Industries:

engineering and metal products, motor vehicle assembly, transportation equipment, scientific instruments, processed food and beverages, chemicals, basic metals, textiles, glass, petroleum

Employing Workers: 23*

Registering Property: 158*

Enforcing Contracts: 21*

Closing a Business: 8*

*2006 World Bank rank out of 175 countries

Starting a Business

The table below shows the number of steps and the amount of time needed to start a business, on average

Indicator	Belgium	Region
Procedures (number)	4
Time (days)	27

Belgium Risk Assessment

Country Rating

Rating: A1

The political and economic situation is very good. A quality business environment has a positive influence on corporate payment behaviour. Corporate default probability is very low on average.

Risk Assessment

Economic growth remained strong in 2007, thanks to firm domestic demand. Job growth and an increase in their incomes prompted households to continue spending. Corporate investment made it possible to maintain productivity to a very satisfactory level, which partly offset the wage increases. A slight fiscal budget deficit is attributable to lower-than-expected tax revenues.

The economy will grow more slowly this year. The erosion of household and corporate confidence that began late 2007 will continue, which will affect domestic demand. Household spending will come to a standstill, consistent with the moderation of job and income growth and rising consumer prices. Residential construction will only increase slightly amid stricter financing conditions, and the building and public works segment will suffer the sluggishness of public investment. The reduced access to credit will be unlikely to hinder corporate investment with companies still enjoying substantial cash positions. It will slow, however, with the easing of the production capacity constraint. Export performance will be strong despite the euro appreciation. The still very strong demand from high-growth countries, China and oil countries in particular, should offset the expected slowdown of buying from European and American partners. The euro/dollar parity will, however, affect corporate competitiveness. In a politically difficult context, there will be little likelihood for adoption of fiscal measures to limit public spending, which will, on the contrary, accelerate. The fiscal budget should thus remain slightly in deficit, despite the easing of debt service.

Bankruptcies increased sharply late last year. Corporate profitability and cash positions will nonetheless remain generally satisfactory, a situation reflected by the Coface payment incident index for Belgium below the world average. In 2008, several export-intensive sectors will maintain good growth performance including chemicals, steel, mechanical engineering and transport facilities. Risks will persist in sectors like construction, textiles/clothing, retailing, car dealers and garages and hotel/catering.

STRENGTHS

• A privileged position at the heart of the Western European economic area and the presence of community institutions enhance its capacity to host foreign companies.
• Foreign trade benefits from quality road, rail, and port infrastructure.
• The current account shows a surplus attributable to solid positions in intermediary goods.
• A public sector balance near equilibrium has facilitated gradual reduction of public sector debt.

• By narrowing central authority at the national level, regionalisation has made it more difficult to reduce territorial disparities.
• The limited degree of internationalisation of service companies has not been conducive to either innovation or development of high value-added sectors.
• By undermining job prospects for youth, deficient vocational training has been a factor in continuing high structural unemployment.
• The fiscal equilibrium rests on isolated measures inadequate in relation to the ageing of the population.

• Agriculture
• Apparel
• Arts & Crafts
• Automobile
• Bags, Cases & Boxes
• Chemicals
• Computer Hardware & Software
• Construction & Real Estate
• Consumer Electronics
• Electrical & Electronics
• Energy & Environment
• Food & Beverage
• Furniture & Furnishing
• Health & Medicine
• Home Supplies
• Industrial Supplies
• Lights & Lighting
• Machinery
• Mineral & Materials
• Office Supplies
• Security & Protection
• Service
• Sports & Entertainment
• Telecommunications
• Textile
• Toys
• Transportation