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2018 Annual Economic and Financial Review
DOMESTIC ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTS
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6
Eastern Caribbean Central Bank
previous year. Manufactured output
intensified in Grenada (7.0 per cent), as the
production of beverages and poultry feed
improved. In addition, increasing
manufacturing activity was recorded in
Saint
Lucia
(6.0
per
cent),
St Vincent and the Grenadines (5.8 per cent),
St Kitts and Nevis (3.0 per cent) and
Montserrat (2.0 per cent).
Output in the agriculture, livestock and
forestry sector is estimated to have contracted
by 2.4 per cent, compared with a decline of
10.1 per cent in the prior year. The
contraction in value added in that sector was
driven primarily by a 2.6 per cent fall in crop
production, particularly nutmeg. Value added
from nutmeg fell by 12.5 per cent, in contrast
to the previous year, when it increased by
17.2 per cent. This outcome mirrored
developments in the nutmeg industry in
Grenada, where production decreased by
13.1 per cent. Output of other crops fell by
3.7 per cent, driven predominantly by
contractions of 10.0 per cent in Dominica and
2.8 per cent in Grenada. These declines were
partially offset by an increase in the output of
bananas, driven by an expansion of
5.8 per cent in production in Saint Lucia, as
export to the UK rose. On the contrary,
banana output declined in Dominica and
Grenada by 29.4 per cent and 8.7 per cent,
respectively. Relatedly, the tonnage of
banana produced and exported increased,
contributing to growth of 5.4 per cent in
revenues from banana exports. The livestock
sub-sector recorded a lower output, estimated
at 1.8 per cent, compared with a contraction
of 2.1 per cent in 2017.
Prices, Wages and Employment
Most ECCU member countries experienced
inflationary conditions during the year
under review.
The increases in consumer
prices ranged from 1.0 per cent in Grenada to
2.8 per cent in Dominica. The other
economies functioning under elevated price
conditions were Montserrat (2.4 per cent),
Saint
Lucia
(1.6
per
cent),
Antigua and Barbuda (1.5 per cent) and
St Vincent and the Grenadines (1.4 per cent).
A deflationary environment prevailed in
St Kitts and Nevis (0.8 per cent) and Anguilla
(0.4 per cent). Most of the inflation reported
was a consequence of higher prices for
utilities, gas, fuels and a number of food
items.
Information with regard to wage movements
in the public sector indicated mixed
developments within the member territories.
Public servants in Antigua and Barbuda