KINGSTON, Jamaica — Data from the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) has indicated that Jamaica earned just over US$1.4 billion from exports in 2021 – 15.2 per cent higher than the 2020 outturn.

Director-General of STATIN Carol Coy, said in a release the increase was largely spurred by higher exports of mineral fuels (up 75.5 per cent). Coy was speaking during STATIN’s digital quarterly media briefing on Thursday, April 21.

She also revealed that domestic export earnings climbed by 10 per cent last year to US$1.28 billion. This, she pointed out, was due to a rise in manufacturing and agriculture industry exports, which increased by 30.8 per cent and 8.1 per cent, respectively.

Coy noted that increased exports for manufacturing largely resulted from hikes in the outflows of ‘Other Manufactured Products’, up 49 per cent, and ‘Food, Beverages and Tobacco’, up 14.5 per cent.

“Over the past three years, the [manufacturing] industry’s share to total domestic exports moved from 30.8 per cent in 2018 to 56.3 per cent in 2021,” she said.

The Director-General said increased exports of yams, fruits and beverage and coffee, were the main contributors to the rise in the agricultural industry’s outturn.

“Exports of yam were 4.4 per cent above the US$35 million in 2020 while earnings from other fruits and beverage and coffee rose by 34.3 per cent and 8.9 per cent respectively,” she indicated.

Coy advised, however, that earnings from mining and quarrying totaled US$465.2 million, representing a 10.6 per cent decline when compared to 2020, while adding that alumina and bauxite exports fell in 2021. She also said despite increased export earnings in 2021, revenue was 12.9 per cent below the pre-COVID-19 pandemic level in 2019.