New trade data released by Belize’s official statistics agency reveals a stark widening of the country’s trade imbalance in March 2026, with plummeting values of key traditional exports hitting agricultural producers and farming communities hardest across the nation.
According to the latest External Trade Bulletin from the Statistical Institute of Belize, total merchandise imports climbed 38.7% year-over-year to hit $321.4 million in March 2026. The sharp jump in inbound goods was led by increased purchases of manufactured products, energy resources, and industrial infrastructure: the country imported far more diesel fuel, construction materials, and telecommunications equipment than it did in the same month a year prior, driving the overall import surge.
On the export side, however, the performance paints a far grimmer picture for local producers. Total domestic exports fell 18.7% year-over-year, dropping from $30.9 million in March 2025 to just $25.1 million in March 2026. Nearly all of Belize’s highest-value agricultural export sectors recorded steep declines, with the biggest losses concentrated in commodities that rely heavily on small-scale farmer output.
Red kidney bean export revenues fell by $2.1 million compared to last year, while citrus export earnings dropped by $1.8 million. Sugar exports declined by $0.8 million, pulled down by both lower shipment volumes and softening global market prices. Most alarmingly, formal cross-border cattle exports that hit $1.9 million in March 2025 fell all the way to zero in March 2026, with no cattle registered for export at all during the month.
For Belize’s rural farming communities, these trade figures translate directly to tangible financial strain. Falling export revenues have cut household incomes, narrowed profit margins for producers and exporters, and forced difficult planning decisions for the coming growing and harvesting season.
That said, the report did note a small handful of bright spots in the export sector. Banana export revenues saw a slight uptick to $8.5 million, while molasses exports surged dramatically from just $40,000 in March 2025 to $1.0 million this year. Exports of marine products, including commercial lobster and shrimp, also recorded a modest improvement over last year’s figures.
Looking at the broader trend for the year to date, total exports across the first three months of 2026 reached just $65.4 million, marking a 9.1% decline compared to the same three-month period in 2025. The ongoing slump in core agricultural exports has raised questions about the resilience of Belize’s trade-dependent rural economy, as stakeholders begin assessing long-term adjustments to shifting global market conditions.