Jamaica Records Estimated 2.9% Six-Month Calendar Year Growth  

• Jamaica is estimated to have recorded gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 2.9% for the first six months of 2023. Director General, of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Dr. Wayne Henry, made the disclosure during the agency’s digital press conference on Thursday (August 17).
• He informed that the Services Industry grew by 3.5%, while the Goods Producing Industry expanded by 1%. The industries that were estimated to have recorded the largest increases during the first half of the year were Mining and Quarrying, up 137.7%; Hotels and Restaurants, up 18.5%; Other Services, up 11.4%; and Transport, Storage and Communication, up 6.1%.
• He noted that the short-term prospects for the overall economy are positive, based on expected improved performances in the abovementioned industries and informed that there is also anticipated strengthening in business confidence, which is based on firms’ perception that business conditions will improve. This, he outlined is expected to drive demand.
• The short-term prospects are also based on the continued recovery of the global economy, which augurs well for external demand. This is supported by recent projections from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) indicating a strengthening in global growth for 2023.
• However, this positive outlook could be significantly impacted by adverse weather conditions, including drought and heavy rainfall; plant downtime, due to relatively aged equipment in major industries, particularly in the manufacturing industry; and slower than expected growth in the economies of Jamaica’s main trading partners.

(Source: JIS News)