Economy
Inflation climbed to 2.9% at end of 2024
(CNS): The cost of living is a major issue on the campaign trail, and candidates across the board are offering up a variety of solutions, such as sourcing food outside the United States and greening the economy to cut down on fuel and electricity. But it’s unlikely there are any quick fixes to the problem. […]
Regional economist to challenge cruise ‘wisdom’ at rally
(CNS): One of the Cayman Islands’ favourite regional economists will be examining the received economic wisdom about cruise tourism at a rally next week. Marla Dukharan has often praised Cayman’s economic policies, but she has challenged the concept that cruise tourism is a positive for the economy, and when she appears on the CPR platform next […]
Inflation report reflects last year’s cost of living pain
(CNS): The Economics and Statistics Office has released the inflation report for the third quarter of 2024, which revealed that the economic pressure Cayman Islands residents were feeling last year continues to be one of the biggest problems the next government will need to tackle. At the end of September, after several years of constantly […]
UPM stalled work on economic plan because of election
(CNS): The first steps taken by the finance ministry to begin shaping a sustainable economic development plan for the Cayman Islands were stalled by the UPM administration back in August 2024 because the caucus decided that it wasn’t appropriate even to do the early groundwork because there was to be an election this year. Financial […]
OAG: Lack of overall economic plan puts Cayman at risk
(CNS): The failure of successive governments to develop an overall strategic economic plan to finish the much overdue National Development Plan or to manage the country’s population surge is putting its future at risk, the Office of the Auditor General found in a report published Thursday. Even though Cayman’s economy is strong, largely due to […]
Cayman GDP increased to 3.6% in first quarter of 2024
(CNS): Economic activity in the Cayman Islands, as measured by the gross domestic product (GDP) in real terms, is estimated to have increased by 3.6% in the first three months of 2024 as the country continued its road to recovery after the 2020 pandemic which decimated the tourism sector for over two years.
Local jobless rate at 4.9% as workers grow to 62k
(CNS): The significant growth in the workforce over the last year has done little to assist the local unemployment rate, which was still running at 4.9% at the end of April. According to the results of the ESO’s Spring 2024 Labour Force Survey, over 61,000 people are currently in work, an increase of 6.5% compared […]
First CIG report released on state of cruise tourism
(CNS): The Economics and Statistics Office has released a report on the impact of cruise tourism on Cayman’s economy, based on data from the Florida Caribbean Cruise Association, the Port Authority of the Cayman Islands and the Department of Tourism. The document looks at government revenue from cruise tourism, how much passengers spend while ashore, […]
GDP grows by 4.2%, nears CI$71k per capita in 2023
(CNS): The Cayman Islands’ real gross domestic product (GDP) expanded by an estimated rate of 4.2% last year, a slight decline from the growth of 5.2% in 2022. The nominal GDP per capita income was estimated at $70,985 for 2023 even though, according to the last Labour Force Survey, well over 60% of the working […]
2024 Inflation rate slows but COL still crippling families
(CNS): In the second quarter of 2024, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 132.7, which is 1.7% more than the second quarter of 2023, with eight out of the twelve divisions recording higher price indices. And while the rate of inflation may be slowing, given the historic highs over the last few years and the […]
Non-oil imports grow 3.6% to over $1.31 billion
(CNS): The total value of goods imported into the Cayman Islands last year was $1.53 billion, an increase of 2% over the previous year, according to the Foreign Trade Report 2023 produced by the Economics and Statistics Office. The value of non-petroleum products grew by 3.6% from 2022 to over $1.31 billion, while the value […]
