Caribbean Countries Ends 2013 on Strong Economic Footing

May 29, CMC – Caribbean countries ended 2013 on a more solid economic footing than it had done since the start of the 2007/2008 global economic recession, according to figures released by the Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB).

The CDB, which is holding its 44th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors here, said that many of its borrowing member states (BMCs) recorded increases “albeit modest in economic activity”.
CDB President Dr. Warren Smith said that “at the regional level, growth and sustainability were recurring themes in discussions about performance”.

The CDB said that preliminary estimates indicate that the economic activity in the region grew by an average of 1.5 per cent last year, up slightly from a revised figure of 1.2 per cent for 2012.
The region’s premier development financial institution noted that higher incomes and employment in advanced economies and renewed flows of foreign direct investment(FDI) contributed to solid growth in construction activity and continued recovery in tourism in most of the BMCs.