KINGSTON, Jamaica— Jamaica’s export earnings rose 16.9 per cent to US$1.4 billion between January and October 2023, when compared to the similar period in 2022.

This was due primarily to a 113.1 per cent increase in the export of “crude materials, excluding fuels”, according to the latest International Merchandise Trade Bulletin issued on Wednesday by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN).

According to STATIN, domestic exports increased by 17.6 per cent to US$1.3 billion compared to US$1.1 billion for the 2022 period. This was primarily due to an increase in exports from the mining and quarrying and agriculture industries. Domestic exports accounted for 77.3 per cent of total exports while re-exports increased by 14.4 per cent to value US$379.1 million.

Meanwhile, Jamaica’s total spending on imports for the 10-month period, were valued at US$6.4 billion, while earnings from total exports were valued at US$1.7 billion.

STATIN said the value of imports declined by 0.6 per cent when compared to the US$6.4 billion spent in the same period in 2022. This decrease was largely attributable to lower imports of “raw materials/intermediate goods” (3.6 per cent) and “fuels and lubricants” (13.7 per cent).

The Institute shared that Jamaica’s five main import trading partners for the period were the United States of America (USA), China, Brazil, Japan and Colombia. Expenditure on imports from these countries increased by 0.5 per cent, when compared to the US$3.9 billion recorded in the similar 2022 period. This was due chiefly to higher imports of machinery and transport equipment.

The top five destinations for Jamaica’s exports were the USA, Puerto Rico, Latvia, the Russian Federation, and Iceland. Export revenues from these countries increased by 17.1 per cent to US$1.1 billion due to higher exports of alumina.