2020 Annual Economic and Financial Review

2020 Annual Economic and Financial Review

SAINT VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES

public sector debt rose by 11.0 per cent to $1,851.8m (84.7 per cent of GDP) at the end of 2020, from $1,667.7m (74.9 per cent of GDP) the year prior . Changes in the debt dynamics were fuelled by an increase in the indebtedness of the central government. Central government outstanding debt trended higher by 12.2 per cent to $1,779.3m. In contrast, liabilities of public corporation declined by 10.9 per cent to $72.5m. Banking Sector Developments Partly reflective of adverse real sector developments broad money liabilities (M2) decreased by 6.6 per cent to $1,643.5 (75.2 per cent of GDP), almost reversing a 10.3 per cent increase at the end of 2019.

St Vincent & the Grenadines Public Finance (EC$M)

700.0

600.0

500.0

400.0

300.0

200.0

100.0

0.0

(100.0)

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

Current Revenue

Current Expenditure

Current Balance (before grants)

Capital Expenditure

Current expenditure rose by 6.1 per cent to $638.0m (29.2 per cent of GDP) from $601.5m (27.0 per cent of GDP) the previous year, representing increased outlays on social spending as part of the government’s social protection strategy. This increase was tempered by reduced interest payments (4.9 per cent) as the public sector procured cheaper financing to consolidate and service its existing debt. Capital expenditure rose by 44.0 per cent to $188.0 (8.6 per cent of GDP) as a number of labour intensive construction projects, including road repair and enhancement, were fast tracked to spur economic activity. The overall deficit was financed principally by a near four-fold ($309.8m) increase to $426.1m in external loan disbursements. As a corollary to the fiscal pressures placed on public finances by the global recession, the total disbursed outstanding

St Vincent & the Grenadines Selected Monetary Indicators Annual Percentage Change

10.0 12.0

50.0

40.0

0.0 2.0 4.0 6.0 8.0

30.0

20.0

10.0

(8.0) (6.0) (4.0) (2.0)

(Money & Credit)

(Net Foreign Assets)

0.0

(10.0)

42735

43100

43465

43830

44166

Credit

Money

Net Foreign Assets

Domestic claims (credit) expanded by 5.2 per cent to $1,128.0m, mostly attributable to an increase in claims on

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