Annual Economic and Financial Review -December 2018

2018 Annual Economic and Financial Review

SAINT LUCIA

tourism industry, is estimated to have increased by 4.3 per cent in 2018, compared with growth of 10.3 per cent recorded in the previous year. The sector’s contribution to GDP grew marginally to 10.7 per cent from 10.3 per cent in 2017. This performance was the result of strengthened activity in both sub- sectors. The improved performance also reflected growth in the total number of visitors, which increased by 10.2 per cent to 1,228,718, primarily attributable to growth in the cruise ship sub-category. The number of cruise ship passengers grew by 13.6 per cent to 760,306, slightly lower than the rate of 13.9 per cent recorded last year. The expansion in the number of cruise passengers largely reflected an increase in the capacity of the vessels visiting the island. Stay-over arrivals increased by 2.2 per cent to 394,780, a deceleration when compared with growth of 11.0 per cent in 2017. The performance in the stay-over sub-category was attributable to growth in the number of visitors from all major source markets, except Canada. Visitor arrivals from the USA, the largest market as it accounted for approximately 44.3 per cent of total stay-over arrivals, grew by 4.1 per cent compared with an increase of 6.8 per cent in 2017. Europe, the second largest source market, posted

growth of 3.8 per cent to 95,988 mainly the result of an increase in arrivals from the UK (4.9 per cent) and France (17.3 per cent). The number of stay-over visitors from the Caribbean, the third major market, grew by 1.6 per cent, compared with growth of 13.6 per cent recorded in 2017. Stay-over arrivals from Canada, on the contrary, fell by 5.6 per cent to 40,213. The performance of the Canadian market was in stark contrast to an increase of 12.7 per cent recorded in the prior year. Of the other categories of visitors, the number of yacht arrivals and excursionist grew by 26.7 per cent and 8.9 per cent, respectively.

Manufacturing activity is estimated to have picked up pace as the sector persisted on its growth trajectory. Value added in that sector rose by 6.0 per cent in 2018, compared with a

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