St. John’s Antigua, June 29, 2021. The Statistics Division under the Ministry of Finance and Corporate Governance releases the International Merchandise Trade Bulletin for the Fourth Quarter 2020.
IMPORTS
In the fourth quarter of 2020, Antigua and Barbuda total imports were valued at EC$ 336.9 million, a decrease of 34.6% when compared to EC$ 514.9 million for the same period in 2019 according to figures compiled by the Statistics Division.
This decline was largely due to a decrease in imports of Miscellaneous manufactured articles, Machinery and transport equipment, Minerals fuels, lubricants and related materials which fell 52.3%, 34.7%, and 38.9% respectively.
EXPORTS
Total exports decreased by 70.7% to EC$ 11.1 million during the period October to December 2020 when compared to EC$ 38.0 million for the same period in 2019.
Domestic exports were valued at EC$ 1.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2020, a decrease of 50.5% when compared to EC$ 2.4 million in 2019. Re-exports were valued at EC$ 9.9 million or 72.1% less than the value for 2019 of EC$ 35.6 million.
PARTNER COUNTRIES
Imports from Antigua and Barbuda top ten trading partners declined by 26.0% with China 60.9%, United States of America 25.7% Brazil 24.5%, Jamaica 20.1% and United Kingdom 17.8% showing the largest percentage decreases for the review period.
CARICOM TRADE
Imports from CARICOM countries during the fourth quarter of 2020 were valued at EC$ 33.1 million, a decrease of 16.0% when compared to EC$ 39.4 million for the same period in 2019. Total exports to CARICOM countries declined by 7.7% to EC$ 2.8 million for period October to December 2020.
Additional information on International Merchandise Trade is outlined in the International Merchandise Trade Bulletin.