Annual Economic and Financial Review -December 2018

S T K I T T S A N D N E V I S

Overview

sectors. Consumer prices fell by 0.8 per cent, on an end of period basis. The fiscal operations of the Federal Government generated a larger overall surplus, driven by a surge in non-tax revenue supplemented by higher tax revenue. The total outstanding public sector debt rose during the period under review. In the banking system, declines were recorded for the principal monetary aggregates including; monetary liabilities, domestic credit and net foreign assets. Liquidity in the commercial banking system rose. The economy of St Kitts and Nevis is expected to expand at an accelerated pace

Available data indicated that the economy of St Kitts and Nevis expanded at an accelerated rate in 2018 compared with the performance in the previous year. Real GDP is estimated to have risen by 3.0 per cent 10 in the period under review, compared with an expansion of 1.2 per cent in the previous year. The economic outturn reflected expansions in the major economic drivers mainly; the hotels and restaurants, construction and manufacturing sectors with positive spinoffs on the wholesale and retail and transport, storage and communications

______________________________________________________________________________ 79 Eastern Caribbean Central Bank 10 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.