JAMAICA’s trade deficit reached a record US$6 billion in 2022 as the prices of imported fuel and raw materials surged last year in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The higher prices pushed the import bill to US$7.7 billion, that is up 29.5 per cent from 2021 and above the previous record import bill of US$6.4 billion in 2019. Exports on the other hand grew also, reaching US$1.9 billion and making the trade deficit just over US$5.8 billion – the highest level it has ever been.

Pushing the country’s import bill to a record last year was a 24.4 per cent jump in the value of raw materials or intermediate goods used in the manufacturing process, as producers ramped up inventory levels to cope with longer lines in the global supply chain.

However, the big-ticket item stretching the nation’s bill last year was fuel imports, which account for roughly one of every three dollars spent on goods from overseas.

The war in Ukraine sent the price of fuel surging close to record highs, stoking a 54 per cent increase in Jamaica’s fuel bill as it reached US$2.3 billion. Food imports at over US$1 billion also contributed.

On the export side, most of the growth was from manufacturing last year; Jamaica’s re-exports of fuel contributed the most. Exports from mining fell 33 per cent.