We turn briefly to KUDUS, a sister application in the DEEDS ABIDE suite. In most
countries production of a mineral such as nickel, even at $24,000 per ton, rarely
dominates the gross domestic product. Cuba has a population of 11.5 million. Gross
Domestic Product is not a favored measure of ours: Cuba's is estimated at $114 billion US if
one uses purchasing power parity but closer to $60 billion US at what passes for an official
exchange rate. Cuban exports are about $3.3 billion probably half of which is nickel.
Whether Cuba could or should sell more nickel to cover its $7 billion trade imbalance is not
easy to answer. New Caledonia is a more extreme example. It has more than 250,000
people. GDP is about $3 billion. Exports are almost all nickel and are listed at only 1.3
billion (at current prices should be easily double that). The $700 million trade deficit is
made up for by tourism revenues and by subsidies from France.
countries production of a mineral such as nickel, even at $24,000 per ton, rarely
dominates the gross domestic product. Cuba has a population of 11.5 million. Gross
Domestic Product is not a favored measure of ours: Cuba's is estimated at $114 billion US if
one uses purchasing power parity but closer to $60 billion US at what passes for an official
exchange rate. Cuban exports are about $3.3 billion probably half of which is nickel.
Whether Cuba could or should sell more nickel to cover its $7 billion trade imbalance is not
easy to answer. New Caledonia is a more extreme example. It has more than 250,000
people. GDP is about $3 billion. Exports are almost all nickel and are listed at only 1.3
billion (at current prices should be easily double that). The $700 million trade deficit is
made up for by tourism revenues and by subsidies from France.
