was 54 billion kilowatt-hours.FCurrency and Banking The basic unit of currency is the Colombian peso (1037 pesos equal U.S.$1; 1996). The Bank of the Republic is the sole bank of issue and operates the mint, salt, and emerald monopolies for the government. It also shares responsibility for monetary policy with the government monetary board. More than 25 commercial banking institutions, as well as the government development banks and several other official and semiofficial financial institutions, operate in Colombia. Stock exchanges serve Bogot, Medelln, and Cali.GCommerce and Trade The principal export of Colombia is coffee, which typically accounts for about one-sixth of the yearly value of all exports. Petroleum, cotton goods, fresh-cut flowers, bananas, chemicals, sugar, coal, gold, emeralds, and cattle are other leading exports. The most important imports are mechanical and electrical equipment, chemicals, food, and metals. Colombia's annual exports earned $9.8 billion and its imports cost some $13.9 billion in 1995. The United States is Colombia's main trading partner, and Venezuela, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Brazil, and Peru also have a significant amount of trade with the country. Colombia is an original member of the Andean Group (1969), which also includes Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. Colombia entered into two other trade associations in 1995, the Group of Three and the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). The Group of Three, composed of Mexico, Venezuela, and Colombia, aims to phase out trade barriers between those countries. The ACS, composed of the members of the Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM) and 12 other Latin American nations, was the fourth largest trading bloc in the world in the mid-1990s. In addition, the Andean Group agreed in March 1996 to begin reducing trade barriers among its member nations. These associations assured Colombia an important position in regional trade.HTransport...
