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Syria was an overwhelmingly agricultural country until the early 1960s, when planned large-scale industrialization began. The state plays a major role in all areas of the country's economy. Some 40% of the people earn their living by farming; since 1970 land cultivation has increased more than 50%, largely because of government incentives and wider and more efficient use of irrigation. The best farmland is located along the coast and in the Jabal al-Nusayriyah, around Aleppo, in the region between Hama and Homs, in the Damascus area, and in the land between the Euphrates and Khabur rivers, which is known as Al Jazira [Arab.,=the island]. The principal crops include wheat, potatoes, sugar beets, barley, cotton, tobacco, chickpeas, and lentils. Large numbers of poultry, cattle, and sheep are raised, and dairy products are important. Tourism has expanded in recent years.
Damascus, Aleppo, and Homs are the chief industrial centers. The main manufactures are refined petroleum, textiles, processed food, beverages, chemicals, and precision-engineered products. Handicrafts such as articles of silk, leather, and glass are widely produced. The principal minerals extracted are petroleum, found mainly at Qarah Shuk (Karachuk) in the extreme northeast; natural gas, found mainly in the Al Jazira region; phosphates; limestone; and salt. Petroleum pipelines from Iraq and Jordan cross Syria, and there is also a pipeline from Qarah Shuk to the Mediterranean coast.
Since 1974 oil has been Syria's most important source of revenue, accounting for about 65% of its exports in the late 1990s. Latakia and Tartus are the main seaports. The annual value of Syria's imports is greater than the value of its exports. The principal imports are machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, metals, textiles, chemicals, and consumer goods; the chief exports are petroleum, textiles, farm products, and phosphates. The leading trade partners are Germany, Italy, France, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia.
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