Oil price decline cuts import figures
George Town dock, Grand Cayman
(CNS): The value of imports into the Cayman Islands fell again in the second quarter of this year, recently released government statistics have revealed. The total value of all goods brought in CI$182.9 million, 9% lower than the value of goods this time last year, which had reached well over $200 million.
“The decline reflects the sustained reduction in the value of petroleum and related products resulting from the lower prices in the international market compared to a year ago,” explained the Minister for Finance and Economic Development Marco Archer.
Non-petroleum products, which accounted for 84.8 percent of total imports, fell at a comparatively lower rate (0.9%). Among major sub-categories of non-petroleum imports, professional equipment including medical equipment registered the steepest contraction of 65.3%, which Archer suggested may be associated with the normalization of medical equipment imports following a build-up in 2014.
More information on the “The Cayman Islands’ Quarterly Trade Statistics Bulletin: April to June 2015” is available on the ESO website.
