Dominica’s economy contracted by 2.7% in 2015 & remains the slowest in the region, says UNECLAC Report

Dominica’s economy contracted by 2.7 percent in 2015, making it the slowest in the region, according to new data released by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. The contraction was largely due to the passage of Tropical Storm Erika which damaged several sections of the island on August 27, 2015, the report shows.
 
The report shows the economy of the Dominican Republic is the fastest growing in the region with 6.6% growth in GDP in 2015, followed by St. Kitts & Nevis with estimated growth of 5.2%. Grenada ranked 4th with growth of 3.5% and Antigua & Barbuda 5th with 3.2%.
 
Neighbouring island St. Lucia ranked 11th with growth of 1.3% in 2015. At the bottom of the pile are Trinidad and Dominica, with the slowest growing economies. Trinidad economy grew by a mere 0.2% in 2015.
 
Dominica’s economy was the only one in the Caribbean, which contracted in 2015, with minus 2.7%. The full ranking published in the ‘Caribbean Journal’ is as follows:
 
Dominican Republic                        6.6%
St. Kitts & Nevis                                5.2%
Cuba                                                   4.0%
Grenada                                            3.4%
Antigua & Barbuda                          3.2%
Suriname                                           2.2%
Haiti                                                    2.0%
Guyana                                              2.0%
Belize                                                 1.7%
Bahamas                                           1.5%
St. Lucia                                             1.3%
Jamaica                                              1.0%
St. Vincent & the Grenadines        1.0%
Barbados                                          0.5%
Trinidad & Tobago                          0.2%
Dominica                                          -2.7%