Jamaica’s January–May goods trade gap widens as exports fall

Jamaica’s goods trade deficit widened in January–May 2026 as import expenditure increased and export earnings declined, according to STATIN’s release and the Jamaica Observer’s September 13 account.

Goods imports totalled US$3,218.3 million, while exports earned US$674.7 million. Subtracting the latter from the former gives a deficit of US$2,543.6 million. For the corresponding 2025 period, imports were US$3,161.4 million and exports US$770.9 million, leaving a US$2,390.5 million gap.

Imports rose 1.8% against that earlier five-month period. STATIN attributed the increase to higher spending on raw materials/intermediate goods, which grew 5.2%, capital goods excluding motor cars, up 7.4%, and transport equipment, up 6.6%.

Intermediate goods are inputs used to produce other goods; capital goods are longer-lived equipment used in production. Those classifications distinguish purchases supporting economic activity from a simple account of finished consumer products arriving from abroad.

Exports fell 12.5% from a year earlier. The main explanation in STATIN’s release was a 44.3% reduction in the export value of crude materials excluding fuels. That category’s decline concerns earnings, not a reported fall of the same size in physical output.

The primary news release is dated September 9, 2026, and says the January–May data were released that day. The Observer account appeared on September 13.

The United States, China, Japan, Colombia and Brazil were Jamaica’s five largest sources of imported goods in the period. Spending on imports from those countries reached US$2,153.3 million, up 14.3% from US$1,884.6 million in the corresponding 2025 period.

The leading export destinations were the United States, Russia, the Netherlands, Canada and the United Kingdom. Combined export earnings from them were US$507.0 million, down 0.5% from US$509.6 million.

The partner-group changes differ from the overall totals. Imports from the largest suppliers increased faster than total imports, while exports to the leading destinations fell much less than Jamaica’s total export earnings.

All the reported values are in US dollars. Merchandise statistics cover physical goods; they do not include service exports such as tourism. The goods deficit consequently cannot be substituted for a broader goods-and-services balance.