KINGSTON, Jamaica — Official trade data released Friday shows Jamaica’s cross-border merchandise trade has faced notable headwinds in the opening two months of 2026, with both import expenditure and export revenue dropping sharply compared to the same period last year. The figures were published by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) in its latest quarterly International Merchandise Trade Bulletin, offering an early snapshot of the country’s trade performance for the new year.
Between January and February 2026, the total value of goods imported into Jamaica reached US$1.214 billion, down 8.1% from the US$1.321 billion recorded in the first two months of 2025. STATIN’s breakdown of the import decline attributes the drop to reduced spending across three key product categories: raw materials and intermediate goods fell 6.8%, consumer goods dropped 7.8%, and fuels and lubricants saw a steep 20.2% reduction in total import value.
On the export side, the contraction was even more pronounced. Total export earnings for the review period hit just US$217.7 million, a 28.8% nosedive from the US$305.8 million Jamaica earned from exports in the first two months of 2025. The national statistics agency noted the overwhelming majority of this decline stems from a 59.1% collapse in the export value of crude materials (excluding fuel products), Jamaica’s largest export category by volume.
The report also outlined the Caribbean nation’s top trade partners for the start of 2026. The United States, China, Brazil, Japan, and Trinidad and Tobago remain Jamaica’s five largest sources of imported goods. Combined imports from these five economies totaled US$837.3 million, representing a marginal 0.5% decrease from the same period in 2025.
For exports, the top five destination markets were unchanged from previous reporting periods: the United States, the Russian Federation, Trinidad and Tobago, the Netherlands, and Canada. Combined export earnings from these key markets amounted to US$164.2 million, a 19.1% year-over-year drop that aligns with the broader downward trend across Jamaica’s entire export sector.