« About Jamaica | Main Page | Major Cities In Jamaica »
Economic overview:
Jamaica has natural resources, primarily bauxite, and an ideal climate conducive to agriculture and tourism. Jamaica’s rich economic history has shaped the population’s unique strength of character from leading the world’s economy in sugar production.
Jamaica is a middle-income, oil-importing country that attempted diverse economic development strategies during the 1970s and 1980s.Jamaica had the second largest GDP of the Commonwealth Caribbean.
Jamaica’s most important export crop is sugarcane, from which rum and molasses are also made. The nation’s other agricultural exports include the famed Blue Mt. coffee, bananas, citrus fruits, and yams. Most of these crops are grown on large plantations. Small farms also produce ginger, cocoa, pimento, ackee, chickens, and goats. Mining is a major source of wealth; since large, easily accessible deposits of bauxite were discovered in 1942, Jamaica has become one of the world’s leading suppliers of this ore. Along with the alumina made from it, bauxite accounts for almost half of Jamaica’s foreign exchange.
Exports:
$1.355 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Exports – commodities:
Alumina, bauxite, sugar, bananas, rum, coffee, yams, beverages, chemicals, wearing apparel, mineral fuels
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————- Exports - partners:
US 29.3%, Canada 11.7%, UK 10.8%, France 7.8%, Norway 7%, Germany 6.2%, China 5.9%, Netherlands 4.4% (2003 est.)
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Imports:
$3.265 billion f.o.b. (2003 est.)
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Imports – commodities:
food and other consumer goods, industrial supplies, fuel, parts and accessories of capital goods, machinery and transport equipment, construction materials
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Imports – partners:
US 39.3%, Trinidad and Tobago 9.6%, Germany 5.5%, Venezuela 4.4%, France 4.4%, Japan 4.1% (2003 est.)
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Agriculture – products:
Sugarcane, bananas, coffee, citrus, yams, ackees, vegetables; poultry, goats, milk; crustaceans, mollusks
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
The Jamaican economy is heavily dependent on services, which now account for more than 60% of GDP. The economy faces serious long-term problems: a sizable merchandise trade deficit, large-scale unemployment and underemployment, and a debt-to-GDP ratio of almost 130%. Inflation rose sharply in 2008 as a result of high prices for imported food and oil, but slowed in 2009 because of the global recession. Jamaicaspent the latter half of 2009 negotiating with the IMF for economic assistance and will need to introduce major fiscal reforms in 2010 in order to secure a deal.
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
For other countries business and economy information, Click here »
——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
« About Jamaica | Main Page | Major Cities In Jamaica »
