Caribbean Region Quarterly Bulletin: Volume 6, Issue 4: December 2017

This Caribbean Region Quarterly Bulletin looks at the year in review. 2017 has been a mixed year for the countries of the Caribbean Country Department of the IDB. While The Bahamas, Barbados and Jamaica have been benefiting from strong world demand and still low commodity prices, they are also each dealing with fiscal challenges resulting from high debt-to-GDP and related vulnerabilities. Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago are still recovering from the fall in commodity prices with both countries still experiencing recessions in 2017. Guyana is an outlier in the region. Based on strong gold prices and the prospect of income and revenues from oil extraction that is scheduled for 2020, the country is experiencing strong economic growth.