October 3, 2019

According the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN), “the Jamaican economy grew by 1.3% for the second quarter of 2019 when compared to the similar quarter of 2018.” This was attributable to growth in both the Goods Producing Industries of 0.6% and the Services Industries of 1.6%.

The Goods Producing Industries  growth was achieved in the Manufacturing (3.3%) and Mining & Quarrying (4.6%) Industries. Nonetheless, Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing fell by 1.7% and Construction by 1.4%.  Moreover, STATIN noted that, “growth in the Mining & Quarrying industry was mainly due to the rise in alumina production resulting from improvement in operations at the Alpart refinery.” On the otherhand, higher output in the manufacturing industry was due largely to increased output of 8.3% from the Other Manufacturing sub-industry  which was due to increases in petroleum refining and non-metallic mineral products.

STATIN highlighted, that “the Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing industry’s performance was attributed to unfavourable weather conditions. The fall in the Construction industry was mainly due to a reduction in activities in the civil engineering sub-group. This was a reflection of lower levels of expenditure as some of the major road rehabilitation works were close to completion.”

With respect to the Services Industry, improvement was experienced with the exception of Electricity and Water Supply which recorded a 0.1% decline. STATIN further stated that, “growth was recorded in: Wholesale & Retail Trade; Repairs; Installation of Machinery & Equipment (1.0 %); Hotels & Restaurants (5.8 %), Transport, Storage & Communication (0.8%), Finance & Insurance Services (4.4 %), Real Estate, Renting & Business Activities 0.8 %), Producers of Government Services (0.3%) and Other Services (1.8 %).”

When compared to the previous quarter, the economy grew by 0.1% for the second quarter of 2019 due to a 0.5% rise in the Goods Producing Industries as well as a 0.1% decrease in the Services Industries. 

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