Agriculture . Argentina ranks as the fifth largest wine producer worldwide. Argentina ranks among major global agricultural producers. It leads in beef exports,
citrus, grapes,
honey,
maize,
sorghum,
soybeans,
squash,
sunflower seeds, wheat, and
yerba mate. The sector contributed 9% of GDP in 2010. It generated one fifth of exports, excluding processed food and feed, which amounted to another third. Farmers harvested 103 million tons that year. Oilseeds, mainly
soy and
sunflower, exceeded 54 million tons. Cereals, mainly maize, wheat, and sorghum, surpassed 46 million tons. In recent years, maize output has increased significantly; between 2000 and 2023, production rose by a factor of 3.74, while the planting area expanded by 3.18 times. During this period, the average yield per unit increased by approximately 26%. The country led world production of yerba mate. It ranked among the top five for soy, maize, sunflower seed,
lemon, and
pear. It placed in the top ten for
barley,
grape,
artichoke,
tobacco, and
cotton. It stood among the top 15 for wheat,
sugarcane, sorghum, and
grapefruit. . The versatile legume makes up about half the nation's crop production. Sunflower seed production made Argentina one of the largest globally, with 2.2 million tons in 2010. That year, output included 2.3 million tons of
potato, almost 2 million tons of lemon, 1.3 million tons of
rice, 1 million tons of
orange, 921 thousand tons of
peanut, 813 thousand tons of cotton, 707 thousand tons of
onion, 656 thousand tons of
tomato, 565 thousand tons of pear, 510 thousand tons of
apple, 491 thousand tons of
oats, 473 thousand tons of
beans, 431 thousand tons of
tangerine, 302 thousand tons of yerba mate, 283 thousand tons of
carrot, 226 thousand tons of
peach, 194 thousand tons of
cassava, 174 thousand tons of
olives, 174 thousand tons of
banana, 148 thousand tons of
garlic, 114 thousand tons of grapefruit, and 110 thousand tons of artichoke, plus smaller crops.
Livestock In 2019, producers raised 3 million tons of
beef, fourth globally behind the US, Brazil, and China. They generated the fourth most
honey, tenth most
wool, 13th most
chicken meat, 23rd most
pork, 18th most
cow's milk, and 14th most
chicken egg. Sheep raising and wool thrive in
Patagonia, though output halved since 1990.
Biodiesel exports exceeded US$2 billion in 2011. Fine wine production advanced in quality. Total
viticulture potential remains untapped.
Mendoza leads wine regions, followed by
San Juan.
Policy Farmers imposed a grain embargo in March 2008 to protest export tax hikes. Strikes and lockouts ended after the Senate defeated the increase on 16 July.
Fisheries and forestry Argentine fisheries yield about 1 million tons annually.
Argentine hake comprises 50% of the catch. Workers harvest
pollock,
squid, and
centolla crab widely.
Forestry operates in most regions except the
pampas. Harvesters produce almost 14 million m3 of
roundwood. Growers plant
Eucalyptus,
pine, and
elm for cellulose, furniture, and paper at 1.5 million tons. Fisheries and logging each generate 2% of exports.
Natural resources Mining and other extractive activities, such as gas and petroleum, are growing industries, increasing from 2% of GDP in 1980 to around 4% later. and to over US$3 billion in 2010. the 9th largest world producer of
silver, the 17th largest world producer of
gold and the 7th largest world producer of
boron.
Industry The
World Bank lists the top industrial countries each year, based on the value of production. According to the 2019 list, Argentina had the 31st most valuable industry (57.7 billion dollars), behind Mexico, Brazil and Venezuela, but ahead of Colombia, Peru and Chile. In 2019, Argentina was the 31st largest producer of
steel, the 28th producer of
vehicles, the 22nd brewer of
beer, the 4th producer of
soybean oil and the 3rd producer of
sunflower oil, among other industrial products. Leading sectors by production value were:
food processing and
beverages;
motor vehicles and
auto parts;
refinery products, and
biodiesel;
chemicals and
pharmaceuticals;
steel and
aluminium; and
industrial and
farm machinery;
electronics and
home appliances. Nearly half of Argentine industries are based in the
Greater Buenos Aires area, although
Córdoba,
Rosario, and
Ushuaia are also significant industrial centers; the latter city became the nation's leading
electronics center during the 1980s.
Automotive Argentina produced 791,000 motor vehicles in 2013, and exported 433,000 (mainly to Brazil, which in turn exported a somewhat larger number to Argentina); Argentina's domestic auto market reached a record 964,000 in 2013. This marked a peak in vehicle production, by 2021 production had fallen to 434,753 vehicles. Vehicles remained Argentina's top export to Brazil, accounting for $3.1bil in exports in 2021.
Beverage Beverages became another significant sector, as Argentina continued among the top five wine producing countries; beer overtook wine production in 2000, and today leads by nearly two billion liters a year to one. Argentina became an important manufacturer of
cell phones, providing about 80% of all devices sold in the country. Production of cell phones, computers, and similar products is an assembly industry, importing the majority of the components, and uses designs originating from other countries. High labour costs for Argentina assembly work tend to limit penetration to only Latin America, protected by regional trade treaties.
Farm machinery, another important rubric historically dominated by imports, was similarly replaced by domestic production, which covered 60% of demand by 2013.
Petroleum Around 35 million m3 each of petroleum and
petroleum fuels are produced, as well as 50 billion m3 of natural gas, making the nation self-sufficient in these staples, and generating around 10% of exports.
Services The
service sector is the largest contributor to GDP, accounting for over 60%. Argentina enjoys a diversified service sector, which includes well-developed social, corporate, financial, insurance, real estate, transport, communication services, and tourism.
Trade in services remained in deficit, however, with US$15 billion in service exports in 2013 against US$19 billion in imports. Advertising revenues from contracts abroad were estimated at over US$1.2 billion.
Banking from the
Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve Argentine banking deposits exceeded US$120 billion in December 2012. The financial sector developed via public sector banks, but became dominated by the private sector. Private sector banks accounted for most of the 80 active institutions (over 4,000 branches) and held nearly 60% of deposits and loans, and as many foreign-owned banks as local ones operated in the country. The long-largest bank in Argentina by far, is the public
Banco de la Nación Argentina. Not to be confused with the
Central Bank, this institution accounts for 30% of deposits and a fifth of its loan portfolio.
Education Healthcare Real estate Housing in Argentina is characterized by a mix of high-rise urban apartments, particularly in Buenos Aires, and suburban ranch-style homes, with over two-fifths of capital residents renting.
Retail Telecommunications The
telecommunications sector grew at a fast pace, and the economy benefited from communications services. 77% of the population had access to mobile phones in 2011, 95% of whom used
smartphones as of 2015; Internet access reached over 32 million users, or 75% of the population; and
broadband services. Landline telephone services reached over 9.5 million households. Telecom revenues reached more than $17.8 billion in 2013, and while only one in three retail stores in Argentina accepted online purchases in 2013,
e-commerce reached US$4.5 billion in sales.
Tourism Tourism is an increasingly important sector, providing 4% of direct economic output (over US$17 billion) in 2012; around 70% of tourism sector activity by value is domestic. According to
World Economic Forum's 2017 Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report, tourism generated over US$22 billion, or 3.9% of GDP, and the industry employed more than 671,000 people, or approximately 3.7% of the workforce in 2016. Around 5.7 million foreign visitors arrived in 2017, reflecting a doubling in visitors since 2002 despite a relative appreciation of the peso. Argentines have long been active travelers within Argentina and international tourism saw healthy growth (nearly doubling since 2001). INDEC recorded 5.2 million foreign tourist arrivals and 6.7 million departures in 2013; of these, 32% arrived from Brazil, 19% from Europe, 10% from the United States and Canada, 10% from Chile, 24% from the rest of the Western Hemisphere, and 5% from the rest of the world. Around 48% of visitors arrived by commercial flight, 40% by motor travel (mainly from Brazil), and 12% by sea.
Cruise liner arrivals were the fastest growing type of foreign tourism to Argentina; a of 160 liners carrying 510,000 passengers arrived at the
Port of Buenos Aires in 2013, an eightfold increase in a just a decade.
Energy refinery under construction Argentine electricity generation reached 133.3 billion
kWh in 2013.
Resource estimates of
unconventional shale gas and tight oil in the
Vaca Muerta oil field and elsewhere were estimated to be the world's third-largest. In 2020, the country was the 28th largest oil producer at per day. Argentine electric outputed over 133 billion
kWh in 2013, The country is one of the largest producers and exporters, alongside Canada and Russia of
cobalt-60, a
radioactive isotope widely used in cancer therapy. At the end of 2021 Argentina was 21st in terms of installed hydroelectric power (11.3 GW), the 26th at wind energy (3.2 GW) and the 43rd in solar energy (1.0 GW). The first of three
nuclear reactors was inaugurated in 1974. As of 2015 nuclear power generated 5% of the country's energy output. The electricity sector was unbundled in
generation,
transmission and
distribution by early 1990s reforms. Generation is competitive and mostly liberalized; 75% of capacity is privately owned. In contrast, transmission and distribution is regulated with much less competitive. == GDP by value added ==