Annual Economic and Financial Review -December 2018

2018 Annual Economic and Financial Review

DOMINICA

GDP); relative to a smaller deficit of $70.0m (5.2) per cent of GDP) recorded in 2017. Similarly, a primary deficit of $107.2m (7.9 per cent of GDP) was realised, representing a deterioration from one of $47.8m (3.6 per cent of GDP) recorded in the previous year. The deficits were largely fuelled by an upsurge in capital expenditure, and mainly funded by domestic sources.

Prices, Wages and Employment

The consumer price index is estimated to have risen by 2.8 per cent in 2018, compared with a 0.6 per cent increase in 2017 . The inflationary pressures were largely attributable to increases in the prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages (10.4 per cent); housing, utilities, gas and fuels (1.5 per cent) and transport (1.5 per cent). Regarding wages and employment, complete data are unavailable for the private sector. In the public sector, however, the total number of persons employed rose by 1.5 per cent to 4,236 at the end of 2018, following a decline of 6.3 per cent in the previous year. Among the categories of workers, increases in employment were registered for non- established officers (16.4 per cent) and contractual officers (35.7 per cent). However, this increase was moderated by a 4.3 per cent decrease in the number of established officers and a reduction of half of the number of officers on special assignment.

Capital expenditure grew by $114.7m to $374.7m largely associated with spending on rehabilitation works as well as housing repair and reconstruction post hurricane Maria. Other infrastructural improvements such as the dredging of rivers and investments in human capital also contributed to the rise in capital expenditure. Capital grants spent amounted to $0.1m, a decline from the

Fiscal and Debt Developments

The fiscal operations of the central government resulted in a preliminary overall deficit of $133.0m (9.8 per cent of

______________________________________________________________________________ 49 Eastern Caribbean Central Bank