Business
Jamaica: Recession deepens – economy contracts by 0.6% in 3rd quarter
Jamaica went deeper into recession in the third quarter, during which the economy contracted by 0.6 percent year over year, said the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ).
The July to September performance would follow gross domestic product (GDP) declines in the first and second quarters of 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent respectively, as recorded by the Statistical Institution of Jamaica (STATIN).
“The out-turn for the July to September 2012 period largely reflected the impact of the sluggish global economic environment on the main export industries, as well as drought conditions (on the agriculture sector) which prevailed in June and July 2012,” said PIOJ Director General Dr Gladstone Hutchinson at the planning agency’s quarterly press briefing in Kingston on Tuesday November 20.
The goods-producing industry declined by 2.4 percent while the services industries remained flat, according to the PIOJ.
All the goods-producing sectors registered declines, with mining and quarrying posting the biggest contraction of 10.4 percent. Construction continued to struggle, with a decline of 3.5 percent; manufacturing fell by 0.6 percent; and agriculture was down 0.5 percent, its first quarterly decline since the December 2010 quarter which was severely impacted by Tropical Storm Nicole.