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MEFD September 2019

Published: Monday November 4th, 2019

Domestic economic developments for the month of September were dominated by the passage of Hurricane Dorian, which resulted in a falloff in tourism relative to an average monthly strengthening during the first eight months. Nonetheless, positive impulses to construction output from foreign direct investment projects were sustained, with contributions from the domestic sector likely to increase as post-hurricane rebuilding efforts intensify. Further, domestic inflation firmed in the twelve months to July, reflecting the pass-through effects of the previous-year’s increase in the value added tax (VAT) rate. In the monetary sector, bank liquidity expanded during the review month, as the rise in total deposits outpaced the growth in credit, while external reserves grew amid foreign currency inflows from reinsurance receipts and to a lesser extent from real sector activities.

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