Economy — Page 2

2013 Remittance inflows top $2B

March 7, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Total remittance inflows into Jamaica for 2013 hit a record of US$2.07 billion, US$23 million more than the amount received in 2012, which was the previous record year at US$2.043 billion according to data from the Bank of Jamaica. Net remittances for January to December 2013 were US$1.82 billion, an increase of US$49 million compared to 2012.

The out-turn for December reflected an increase in gross remittance inflows and a contraction in outflows with net remittances for the month reaching US$176 million, an increase of US$2.2 million over the similar period of 2012. Gross remittance inflows for the month were US$195 million, a decrease of US$1.7 million relative to December 2012.

Image courtesy of Boaz Yiftach/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

For the fourth quarter of 2013, net remittances were US$476 million, an increase of US$27 million or 6.0 per cent relative to the corresponding quarter of the previous year resulting from an increase in gross remittance inflows and a contraction in remittance outflows.

Total remittance inflows for the December quarter were US$533 million, representing an increase of US$16 million or 3.0 per cent relative to the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

Related posts | Remittance inflows continues up | October remittances up

Filed Under: Breaking News, Economy, Feature Stories Tagged With: BOJ, Economy, Remittances

Jamaica’s trade deficit improves

March 3, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Jamaica’s trade deficit improvement experienced a recovery in the year to November 2013 as both imports, which fell by US$392 million and exports, down by US$112 million, resulted in the deficit falling by 6.2 percent or US$289 million when compared to the similar period in 2012.

Overall, imports for the 11 month period in 2013 was US$5,664 million, down from US$6,056 million for the same period in 2012 and exports of US$1,442 million, resulted in a trade deficit of US$4,221 million as reported by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN).

Imports | Freezone activity accounted for US$295 million in imports, compared to US$352 million in the corresponding 2012 period. The category of Mineral Fuels, which accounts for 35 percent of the country’s import bill, fell by US$229 million to US$1,984 million compared to the same period of 2012. Machinery and Transport Equipment fell by US$20 million to US$831 million. Chemicals imports was valued at US$741 million, a decrease of US$80 million. Manufactured Goods fell by US$41 million or 7.1 percent to US$544 million. Spending on Food, however, rose by US$12 million to US$888 million as a result of the sharp rise in the price of basic commodities.

Traditional Exports | For the period of January to November 2013, the country earned US$724 million from traditional domestic exports which fell by 2.9 percent or US$22 million versus 2012 period largely due to the decline in Manufacturing exports. Non-traditional domestic exports fell by US$104 million or 13.9 percent to US$643 million compared with the first eleven months of 2012.

Trade with USA improves | The value of imports from the United States of America, a major trading partner, fell by US$145 million or 7 percent to US$1,940 million to November 2013 compared to the similar period in 2012. Merchandise exports sold to the USA fell by US$19 million to US$711 million resulting in the trade deficit of US$1,229 million, down from US$1,355 million for the similar 2012 period, a decline of US$126.5 million.

Trade with CARICOM worsens | Goods imported by Jamaica from the CARICOM region from January to November 2013 grew by US$4.5 million to US$822 million, due largely to increased expenditure on “Food” which increased by US$13 million to US$151 million. Total exports fell by 20 percent or US$15 million to US$63 million.

Filed Under: Breaking News, Economy Tagged With: Deficit, Economy, GOJ, Trade

GOJ deficit up in January

February 28, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Government spent more in January than originally budgeted and collected less than projected to wipe out the projected $761 surplus originally budgeted, ending up with a deficit for the month of $3.274 billion. At the end of January, the year-to-date deficit is at $22.9 billion, just $2.65 billion less than the amount budgeted.

The revenue for the month was short of the $31.37 billion budgeted by $820 million. Capital expenditure exceeds the budget of $3.53 billion in the month by $1.45 billion coming in at $4.98 billion. However, capital expenditure is still running $7.6 billion below budget for the year to January.

The budget projected a shortfall of $2 billion in February and $19.5 billion surplus in March. The latter is in keeping with historical pattern with the last month of the fiscal years realizing a surpluses. If the budget is achieved for the remaining two months of the fiscal year, the fiscal deficit will come close to being wiped out and would have been reduced from $54.6 billion.

For the 10 months to January, tax revenues fell short by $13.2 billion and non-tax was below budget by $3.6 billion and recurrent expenditure was down $14.4 billion from budget. Interest cost was lower by $3.9 billion and other recurrence expenditure by $6.8 billion.

Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: Deficit, Economy, GOJ

Inflation moderates slightly

February 19, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Jamaica’s inflation moderated slightly in January this year, according to data released by Statistical Institute of Jamaica (Statin) compared with the December 2013 inflation rate.

Statin says that the inflation recorded by the All Jamaica Consumer Price Index was 0.5 per cent. Jamaica’s inflation rate for December 2013 was put at 0.6 percent by Statin in an earlier report released in January.

All divisions recorded an inflation rate below 1.0 per cent, with the exception of ‘Furnishings, Household Equipment and Routine Household Maintenance’, which recorded an increase of 2.9 per cent. This movement was due mainly to the increase of approximately 12.0 per cent in the National Minimum Wage which took effect on January. The highest weighted division, ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages’ moved up by 0.4 per cent a slightly lower movement than the 0.5 per cent recorded for December 2013, as lower prices were paid for vegetables and starchy foods.

The upward movement in the index recorded for the divisions for January were as follows: ‘Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages’ which moved up by 0.4 per cent, ‘Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco’ 0.1 per cent, ‘Clothing and Footwear’ 0.2 per cent, ‘Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels’0.7 per cent, ‘Health 0.3 per cent, ‘Transport’ 0.1 per cent. ‘Recreation and Culture’ 0.1 per cent, ‘Restaurants and Accommodation Services’ 0.5 per cent, ‘Miscellaneous Goods and Services’ 0.7 per cent, ‘Education’ and ‘Communication’ recorded negligible movement for the period under review the release stated.

The Index advanced in all three regions: Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area (GKMA) 0.6 per cent, Other Urban Centres (OUC) 0.4 per cent and Rural Areas, 0.5 per cent.

Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: Economy, Inflation, Statin

USA trade deficit worsens, Caricom improves

February 17, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Trade deficit deteriorates with USA | Jamaica’s trade deficit with the United States of America (USA) to October last year resulted in savings of US$136 million, which flowed from a rise in exports and a reduction in imports. This is a decline from the position in August when there was a $212 million improvement.

At the end of the 2013 period, the trade deficit with the USA stood at US$1.1 billion, down from US$1.24 billion in the comparable 2012 period. The value of imports the during the January to October 2013 fell by US$103 million or 5.6 percent to US$1.753 billion compared to the same period in 2012 and exports rose by US$32 million or 5.2 percent to US$651 million, representing 49.6 percent of total earnings from exports.

Expenditure on goods imported from the USA accounted for approximately 34.0 percent of Jamaica’s total expenditure on imports.

Image courtesy of Sommai/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Caricom trade improves | The trade deficit with the Caricom region for the year to October 2013 showed a US$65 million or 9 percent improvement over the similar period in 2012 with the deficit amounting to US$654 million, down from US$719 million in the comparable period of 2012.

Imports from CARICOM during January to October 2013, fell by 10.2 percent or US$80.3 million to US$709.6 million as a result of a decrease in expenditure on “Mineral Fuels, etcetera”. Up to August, imports fell by US$80 million as well and the reduction seems to have stabilised at a lower level than before. Expenditure on this commodity group accounted for 66.6 percent of goods imported from CARICOM during the 2013 period and imports fell by US$87 million or 15.6 percent to US$472 million in the current period. By comparison, in the January to October 2012 period, imports of “Mineral Fuels, etcetera” represented 70.8 percent of Jamaica’s total import bill with CARICOM.

Importation of “Food” rose by 9.3 percent or US$11.9 million to US$140.2 million. Spending on “Beverages & Tobacco” also rose marginally to US$33.4 million.

Total exports declined by 21.2 per cent or US$15.0 million to US$55.8 million during the January to October 2013 period. Domestic exports moved down from US$62 million to US$48 million because of decreases in “Chemicals”, “Misc. Manufactured Articles” and “Mineral Fuels, etcetera”. Earnings from these three commodity groups fell in the 2013 review period to US$5.1 million, US$3.4 million, and US$0.4 million respectively.

Related posts | Non-Traditional exports up | Caricom imports drop

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Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: Deficit, Economy, GOJ, Trade

Remittance inflows continues up

February 12, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Remittance inflows for November last year were US$168 million, an increase of US$10 million or 6.3 per cent compared to the corresponding month in 2012. The rise in total remittance inflows reflected an increase of US$8.0 million in inflows through Remittance Companies and an increase of US$2 million in inflows by other sources.

Net remittances flows were US$149.4 million for November 2013, an increase of US$13.5 million or 9.9 per cent versus the corresponding month in of 2012. The growth in net remittance inflows reflected an increase in gross remittance inflows and a contraction in outflows.

Total remittance inflows from January to November 2013 were US$1.87 billion, an increase of US$24 million over the flows for the similar period in 2012.

The increase in total remittance inflows reflect an increase of US$15 million in inflows through Other Remittances and an increase of US$9 million in inflows through Remittances Companies.

Net remittances for January to November 2013 were US$1.65 billion representing an increase of US$47 million or 2.9 per cent relative to 2012. The outturn for the review period reflected an increase in gross remittance inflows and a contraction in outflows.

Related posts | October remittances up

Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: BOJ, Economy, FX Market, Remittances

Business conditions mending?

February 12, 2014 by IC Insider.com

The perceptions about present and future business conditions improved significantly in the most recent survey relative to the previous survey done in November last year. The survey was commission by Bank of Jamaica and undertaken by Statin.

In the most recent survey, the index hit 97.5 for current business conditions, up strongly from 66.6 in October and 87.4 in September and is at the highest level since June 2012 that was recorded at 115.1. However, the perception of future business conditions remained below the levels recorded in FY2011/12.

The business sector is very bullish on the future, as the future expectations reading is now up to 125 compared to 98.6 in October and is at the highest since November 2012 at 130.6.

About the survey | The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) undertakes surveys of businesses on behalf of the Bank of Jamaica to ascertain the expectations of economic agents about variables which are likely to have an impact on inflation in the near-term. In this regard, the survey captures the perception of Chief Executive Officers, Managing Directors and Financial Controllers about the future movement of prices, current and future business conditions and the expected rate of increase in wages/salaries.

Related posts | Business confidence drops 24%

Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: BOJ, Economy, Statin

Trade deficit gains eroded

February 5, 2014 by IC Insider.com

Jamaica’s trade deficit which saw an improvement for the year to August of US$300 million, suffered a setback by October when the deficit fell by US$210 million, an erosion of $100 million.

The deterioration came as total expenditure on imports during January to October 2013 fell by US$309 million or 5.6 percent, to US$5.16 billion compared to the same period in 2012, while earnings from exports fell by US$99 million or 7 percent to US$1.31 billion resulting in a decline in the trade deficit to US$3.84 billion, down 5.2 percent from the US$4.05 billion recorded in the January to October 2012 period.

“Mineral Fuels etcetera”, “Food”, “Machinery and Transport Equipment”, “Chemicals”, and “Manufactured Goods” were the top five commodity groups imported. Increased spending was recorded for “Food” which rose by US$11.3 million or 1.4 percent to US$807 million, up from the US$795 million accounting for 15.6 percent of imports.

The country imported “Raw Materials/Intermediate Goods” amounting to US$3.22 billion during the 2013 period, compared to US$3.438 billion in the comparable period in 2012, a 6.4 percent decrease amounting to US$218 million. Imports of “Other Fuels and Lubricants” fell by 15.2 percent to US$1.06 billion compared to the US$1.25 billion expenditure for the 2012 period.

Traditional Domestic Exports for the first ten months of 2013 earned US$653 million. Receipts fell by 6.1 percent or US42.6 million largely due to the decline in “Manufacture”. The “Mining and Quarrying” and “Agriculture exports” increase was insufficient to offset the overall decline in total exports during the 2013 period.

Non-Traditional Domestic Exports fell by US$71 million or 10.7 percent to US$589 million during the ten-months of 2013. Earnings represented 47.4 percent of total domestic exports, compared to 48.7 percent in the 2012 period.

Total exports of Non-Traditional declined by 21.2 percent or US$15.0 million to US$56 million during the January to October 2013 period. Domestic exports moved from US$62 million to US$48 million because of decreases in “Chemicals”, “Misc. Manufactured Articles” and “Mineral Fuels, etcetera”. Earnings from these three commodity groups fell in the 2013 review period to US$5 million, US$3.4 million, and US$0.4 million respectively. “

Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: Deficit, Economy, Trade

Employed up, so too unemployed

February 4, 2014 by IC Insider.com

The unemployment rate for September 2013 was 14.9 percent compared to 14.0 percent in September 2012 but males unemployment rate was well below the national average at 10.6 percent but that for females at 20 percent was way over the average.

Employed up | The Employed Labour Force for September 2013 was 1,110,700 or 6,700 more than the 1,104,000 recorded in September 2012. For males, it increased by 6,400 (1.0 percent) to 637,800 and for females there was no noticeable movement.

The Unemployment rates among youths aged 14-24 years was 37.7 percent in 2013, an increase of 3 percentage points compared with 34.7 percent in September 2012. At the same time, male unemployment rate for youths was 31.4 percent compared to 46.2 percent for females.

The main findings of the 2013 Labour Force Survey, conducted by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) and covers the reference week of September 22-28.

Clerks got jobs | While the unemployment rate moved up in September, it was not all doom and gloom as the Occupation group ‘Clerks’ in the Employed Labour Force increased by 14.3 percent or 12,800 persons, from 89,400 in September 2012 to 102,200 in September 2013. The group ‘Service Workers and Shop and Market Sales Workers’ had the largest decline for the same period, moving from 225,900 to 215,300 in September2013 resulting in a decline of 10,600 (4.7 percent) persons.

In September 2013 the largest percentage increase in employment occurred in the industry group ‘Health & Social Work’ where the number of persons employed increased by 32.1 percent or 8,400 persons moving from 26,200 in September 2012 to 34,600. During the same period, the industry group ‘Other Community, Social and Personal Service Activities’ declined by 3,900 (6.1 percent).

Increased unemployed | The number of unemployed persons increased by 14,100 (7.8 percent) moving from 179,900 in September 2012 to 194,000 in September2013. Over the same period the number of unemployed males increased by 1,400 (1.9 percent) and the number of females by 12,700 (12.0 percent).

The number of persons in the Labour Force was 1,304,800, which was 20,900 (1.6 percent) higher than the 1,283,900 recorded in September 2012. The male labour force increased by 7,900 (1.1 percent) from 705,700 in September 2012 to 713,600 in September 2013, and the female labour force increased by 13,000 (2.2 percent) moving from 578,200 to 591,200 during the same period.

Outside labour force | Persons classified as Outside the Labour Force in September 2013 was 774,300. This represents a decrease of 15,200 (1.9 percent) when compared to 789,500 in September 2012. Over the same period, the number of males Outside the Labour Force declined by 5,100 (1.6 percent) moving from 311,700 to 306,600 and females by 10,100 (2.1 percent) moving from 477,800 to 467,700.

Filed Under: Economy Tagged With: Economy, Employment, GOJ, Statin

Grants prop up GOJ revenues

February 2, 2014 by IC Insider.com

The Government of Jamaica’s revenues for December 2013 came up well short of budget. It would have been worse but for an unscheduled intake of grants amounting to $4.1 billion, which helped to prop up the revenues that fell short of budget by $7 billion. Overall, the fiscal operations ended up with a surplus of $5.32 billion in December compared to $5.25 billion originally projected.

For the nine months to December, the government is running $11 billion short on revenues and paid $16 billion less on housekeeping expenses and interest, excluding loan repayments, for an overall deficit of $19.6 billion that is $4.2 billion less than the amount budgeted for of $24.78 billion.

The revenue shortfall is across all major categories with international trade being one of the worse areas, down by $5.7 billion or 6 percent, Income taxes $5.2 billion or 7 percent followed by production taxes off by $1.5 billion or 2 percent. Amount spent on interest is down by $5 billion and capital expenditure by $9 billion.

The government is expected to announce in Parliament that they will close out the 2013/14 fiscal year with a virtual wipeout of the budgeted deficit by the end of March.