Jamaica’s trade deficit for the first three months of 2026 has worsened, as exports continue to trail imports.

The latest International Merchandise Trade (IMT) Bulletin for January to March 2026 quarter shows import amounting to US$1.87 billion while earnings from total exports totalled US$376.6 million. However, the value of imports for the first quarter of 2026 declined by 1.3 %, down from the US$1.89 billion recorded a year earlier. 

This was driven by lower imports of Consumer Goods and Fuels and Lubricants, which fell by 2.4 % and 10.1 %, respectively. Total exports for January to March 2026 was 22.3 % lower than the US$484.6 million for the same period in 2025. 

This was mainly driven by a 48.7 % fall in the value of Crude Materials (Excl. Fuels).

Main trading partners

Over the three-month period, Jamaica’s five main import partners were the United States of America (USA), China, Brazil, Japan and Trinidad and Tobago. Expenditure on imports of goods from these countries amounted to US$1.24 billion, representing a 6.6 % increase compared to US$1.16 billion for January to March 2025.

The top five destinations for Jamaica’s exports for January to March 2026 were the USA, the Russian Federation, the Netherlands, Canada and the United Kingdom. Export revenues from these countries declined by 14.2 % to US$283.2 million.