Barbados is the wealthiest and one of the most developed countries in the Eastern Caribbean and enjoys one of the highest per capita incomes in the region. Historically, the Barbadian economy was dependent on sugarcane cultivation and related activities. However, in recent years the economy has diversified into light industry and tourism. Offshore finance and information services are important foreign exchange earners, boosted by being in the same time zone as eastern US financial centers and by a relatively highly educated workforce. Following the 2008-09 recession, external vulnerabilities such as fluctuations in international oil prices have hurt economic growth, raised Barbados' already high public debt to GDP ratio - which stood at 105% of GDP in 2016 - and cut into its international reserves.
-0.2% (2017 est.)
2.3% (2016 est.)
2.2% (2015 est.)
4.4% (2017 est.)
1.5% (2016 est.)
Moody's rating: Caa1 (2019)
Standard & Poors rating: B- (2019)
$4.488 billion (2019 est.)
$4.493 billion (2018 est.)
$4.519 billion (2017 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
$4.99 billion (2017 est.)
$15,639 (2019 est.)
$15,675 (2018 est.)
$15,789 (2017 est.)
note: data are in 2017 dollars
7.2% of GDP (2017 est.)
11.8% of GDP (2016 est.)
10.8% of GDP (2015 est.)
agriculture: 1.5% (2017 est.)
industry: 9.8% (2017 est.)
services: 88.7% (2017 est.)
household consumption: 84.2% (2017 est.)
government consumption: 13.4% (2017 est.)
investment in fixed capital: 17.6% (2017 est.)
investment in inventories: 0.2% (2017 est.)
exports of goods and services: 31.6% (2017 est.)
imports of goods and services: -47% (2017 est.)
Overall score: 57.9 (2020)
Starting a Business score: 86.4 (2020)
Trading score: 62.8 (2020)
Enforcement score: 38.9 (2020)
sugar cane, poultry, vegetables, milk, eggs, pork, coconuts, pulses nes, sweet potatoes, tropical fruit
tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
2.4% (2017 est.)
144,000 (2017 est.)
agriculture: 10%
industry: 15%
services: 75% (1996 est.)
10.1% (2017 est.)
9.9% (2016 est.)
N/A
lowest 10%: NA
highest 10%: NA
revenues: 1.466 billion (2013 est.) (2017 est.)
expenditures: 1.664 billion (2017 est.)
29.4% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
-4% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
157.3% of GDP (2017 est.)
149.1% of GDP (2016 est.)
1 April - 31 March
-$189 million (2017 est.)
-$206 million (2016 est.)
$485.4 million (2017 est.)
$516.9 million (2016 est.)
US 21%, Poland 14%, Jamaica 8%, Guyana 6%,Trinidad and Tobago 6% (2019)
rums and other hard liquor, ships, orthopedic appliances, cement, packaged medicines (2019)
$1.52 billion (2017 est.)
$1.541 billion (2016 est.)
United States 35%, Trinidad and Tobago 14%, China 9%, Netherlands 5% (2019)
refined petroleum, ships, cars, shipping containers, packaged medicines (2019)
$264.5 million (31 December 2017 est.)
$341.8 million (31 December 2016 est.)
$4.49 billion (2010 est.)
$668 million (2003 est.)
Barbadian dollars (BBD) per US dollar -
2 (2017 est.)
2 (2016 est.)
2 (2015 est.)
2 (2014 est.)
2 (2013 est.)
note: the Barbadian dollar is pegged to the US dollar
NOTE: The information regarding Barbados on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Barbados 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Barbados 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
This page was last modified 16 Dec 23, Copyright © 2023 ITA all rights reserved.