Azerbaijan is an economy that has completed its post-Soviet transition into a major oil based economy (with the completion of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline), from one where the state played the major role. Azeri GDP grew 41.7% in the first quarter of 2007, possibly the highest of any nation worldwide.[6] Such rates cannot be sustained, but despite reaching 26.4% in 2005 (second highest GDP growth in the world in 2005 only to Equatorial Guinea), and 2006 over 36.6% (world highest), GDP has been accelerating every year.
It has substantial oil reserves and a significant agronomic potential based on a wide variety of climatic zones. Since 1995, in cooperation with the IMF, Azerbaijan has pursued an economic stabilization program, which has brought inflation down from 1,800% in 1994 to 1.8% in 2000. The national currency, the Azerbaijani manat, was stable in 2000, depreciating 3.8% against the dollar. The budget deficit equaled 1.3% of GDP in 2000.
Progress on economic reform has generally lagged behind macroeconomic stabilization. The government has undertaken regulatory reforms in some areas, including substantial opening of trade policy, but inefficient public administration in which commercial and regulatory interests are co-mingled limit the impact of these reforms. The government has largely completed privatization of agricultural lands and small and medium-sized enterprises. In August 2000, the government launched a second-stage privatization program, in which many large state enterprises will be privatized.
Azerbaijan has concluded 21 production-sharing agreements with various oil companies. An export pipeline that transports Caspian oil to the Mediterranean from Baky through Tbilisi, Georgia to Ceyhan, Turkey (the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline) became operational in 2006. The pipeline is expected to generate as much as $160 billion in revenues for the country over the next 30 years. The recent high price of oil is highly beneficial to Azerbaijan's economy as the nation is in the midst of an oil boom. Eastern Caspian producers in Kazakhstan also have expressed interest in accessing this pipeline to transport a portion of their production. In March 2001, Azerbaijan concluded a gas agreement with Turkey, providing a future export market for Azerbaijan.
In 2002 the Azerbaijani merchant marine had 54 ships.
In 2008, Azerbaijan was cited as a top 10 reformer by the World Bank's Doing Business report.
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Economy Of Azerbaijan