Annual Economic and Financial Review -December 2018

Eastern Caribbean Central Bank

D O M E S T I C E C O N O M I C D E V E L O P M E N T S

Overview

Supported by positive global developments,

economic activity in the Eastern Caribbean

Currency Union (ECCU) persisted on an

upward trajectory, registering its eighth

consecutive year of expansion.

Provisional

assessments indicate that the regional

economy grew by 3.3 per cen

in 2018, an

acceleration from the pace of 1.4 per cent

recorded in the year prior.

The acceleration

In keeping with international standards, the ECCB updated the terminology used to describe economic activity in the

ECCU. Accordingly, the Bank now reports real change in the economy using real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at

market prices and not Gross Value Added (GVA) at basic prices as used in previous reports of the Annual Economic

and Financial Review (AEFR). However, GVA will remain applicable for output by sector.

largely reflected a turnaround in the

performance of some key sectors including

real estate, wholesale and retail, hotels and

restaurants, and manufacturing; supported by

continued expansion in construction activity.

On a disaggregated basis, preliminary

estimates revealed that economic activity

expanded in all eight territories. Six of the

ECCU member states recorded inflationary

conditions during 2018, compared with the

previous year, when all eight countries

experienced inflationary pressures.