Imports, Exports and Cost of Living Up in November
The latest figures from the Statistical Institute of Belize indicate that Belize’s imports and exports shot up significantly, when comparing November 2021 to November of 2020. The review also showed that there was an increase in the cost of living when compared the same period. News Five’s Marion Ali has the details on the performance of the economy in the following report.
Marion Ali, Reporting
The quantum of goods that Belize imported last month increased by fifty-nine point eight percent over in comparison to November of 2020; while, the amount we exported rose also by fifty-five point eight percent, comparatively for the same month one year later. The Statistical Institute of Belize (S.I.B. for short) reports that Belize’s total imports for last month stood at two hundred and five point two million dollars, which was a difference of seventy-six point eight million over November of 2020. Altogether, our imports for November 2021 were a hundred and twenty-eight point four million dollars.
There were increases in most categories of imported goods, but ‘Manufactured Goods’ were the most notable. This doubled by more than twenty million dollars. According to S.I.B., the only category that recorded a significant decrease was ‘Beverages and Tobacco’, which fell by fifty-five percent from seven point two million in November 2020 to three point two million in November of 2021.
Exports for November 2021 stood at thirty-three point five million or twelve million dollars when compared to the same month in 2020. The main increases were in sugar, animal feed and marine products exportation. The country saw sugar exports double from three point one million to six point two million when comparing the same two months. We also exported more lobster tails and at higher prices, taking up our earnings from marine products from two point nine million to five point one million dollars. However, the earnings from banana exports only grew marginally from seven point nine million in November 2020 to eight point five million dollars in November 2021. Crude export earnings cashed in last month at a mere two hundred thousand dollars. Belize did not export any crude oil in November of 2020.
Interestingly, our earnings in citrus products fell from three million in November of 2020 to just under two million dollars last month. This is reportedly due to a decrease in orange concentrate exports.
Belize’s revenues from the CARICOM went up from four point three million in November of last year to seven point seven million dollars last month, while our exports to Central America more than doubled, from two point five million to five point one million dollars.
From January to November of this year, Belize exported four hundred point eight million dollars worth of goods. This represents a fifteen point eight percentage increase from the three hundred and forty-six point one million dollars we earned last year November.
Meanwhile, cost of living went up by five point seven percent last month compared to what it was in November of 2020. Goods and services that fall within the ‘Transport’ category rose by nineteen percent in November 2021 when compared to November 2020. S.I.B. says the reason for this was the rising costs of fuel products.
The municipality that showed the highest inflation rate between November 2020 and November 2021 was Orange Walk Town at eight point four percent. San Pedro Town recorded the lowest inflation rate at three point six percent higher than the previous November.
