STATIN Develops Export and Import Price Indices

• The Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) has developed an Export and Import Price Indices (XMPIs) that will measure quarterly price changes in the country’s goods inflows and outflows. Director General, Carol Coy, said that the development of the XMPIs is geared towards satisfying changing user needs and reflects the structural changes in the Jamaican economy. 
• In executing its mandate of producing and delivering quality statistics, STATIN recognizes that while it is important to produce its regular statistical products in a timely manner, it also needs to ensure that it meets the growing needs of its stakeholders as best as possible, noting that the XMPI bulletin will be released on a quarterly basis. 
• Meanwhile, Ms. Coy indicated that for the 2020 calendar year review period, the average export price fell by 10.3%, compared to the outturn in 2019. This was due to a 14.6% fall in the XPI of the Mining and Quarrying Industry, impacted by a reduction in the price of alumina. 
• In addition, average import prices fell by 4.4% relative to 2019, resulting from a decline in the import price of ‘Fuels and Lubricants’, and reflecting the fall in global oil prices, she told journalists. Additionally, the average import price for all other categories rose. The import price of ‘Consumer Goods’ increased by 10.5%, while that for “Intermediate Goods/Raw Materials’ rose by 2.7%. 
• Since the start of 2021, import and export prices have been affected by disruptions to the global supply chain, which could cause a rise in the XMPI for 2021.

(Source: JIS News & NCBCM Research)