01Key Takeaways
- Dominica exported $22.04 million worth of goods in 2023, down 1.62% from $22.40 million in 2022.
- Iceland was Dominica's top export destination at 21.42% ($4.72 million), an unusual pairing driven almost entirely by crane and lifting-equipment parts.
- Machinery led every export category at 22.69% ($5.00 million), narrowly ahead of fruit and nuts at 22.09% ($4.87 million).
- Dominica's top three destinations, Iceland, Antigua and Barbuda, and France, made up 48.73% of total export value in 2023.
025-Year Trend
| Year | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $13.2M | $13.1M | $14.1M | $22.4M | $22.0M |
03Top Export Markets (2023)
| Rank | Partner | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Iceland | $4.7M | 21.4% |
| 2 | Antigua & Barbuda | $4.0M | 17.9% |
| 3 | France | $2.1M | 9.4% |
| 4 | United States | $1.8M | 8.0% |
| 5 | St. Lucia | $1.6M | 7.1% |
| 6 | Areas, nes | $1.4M | 6.6% |
| 7 | Barbados | $1.4M | 6.5% |
| 8 | Guyana | $1.1M | 4.9% |
| 9 | St. Kitts & Nevis | $954.7K | 4.3% |
| 10 | British Virgin Islands | $536.7K | 2.4% |
04Top Export Categories (2023)
| Rank | Category | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuclear Reactors, Boilers, Machinery and Mechanical Appliances; Parts thereof | $5.0M | 22.7% |
| 2 | Edible Fruit and Nuts; Peel of Citrus Fruit or Melons | $4.9M | 22.1% |
| 3 | Edible Vegetables and certain Roots and Tubers | $2.5M | 11.3% |
| 4 | Soap, Organic Surface-Active Agents, Washing Preparations, Lubricating Preparations, Artificial Waxes, Prepared Waxes, Polishing or Scouring Preparations, Candles and similar Articles, Modelling Pastes, Dental Waxes and Dental Preparations with a basis of Plaster | $2.4M | 10.8% |
| 5 | Tanning or Dyeing Extracts; Tannins and their Derivatives; Dyes, Pigments and other Colouring Matter; Paints and Varnishes; Putty and other Mastics; Inks | $2.0M | 9.1% |
| 6 | Coffee, Tea, Mate and Spices | $1.2M | 5.6% |
| 7 | Electrical Machinery and Equipment and parts thereof; Sound Recorders and Reproducers, Television Image and Sound Recorders and Reproducers, and Parts and Accessories of such Articles | $732.3K | 3.3% |
| 8 | Vehicles other than Railway or Tramway Rolling-Stock, and parts and accessories thereof | $566.3K | 2.6% |
| 9 | Plastics and Articles thereof | $533.6K | 2.4% |
| 10 | Articles of Iron or Steel | $413.6K | 1.9% |
05Trade Partner Map
06Analysis
A Small Export Total With One Very Unlikely Top Buyer
Dominica exported $22.04 million worth of goods in 2023, down 1.62% from $22.40 million the year before. Iceland was the top destination at 21.42% ($4.72 million), an odd pairing for two islands with no obvious trade history and thousands of miles between them. Parts for pulley tackle, derricks, cranes, and lifts alone accounted for $2.92 million of Dominica's exports to Iceland in 2023, close to two-thirds of that entire relationship. The fact sheet behind this page doesn't record why a specific shipment moved between two specific countries, so the underlying deal or logistics arrangement isn't something this data can confirm.
Antigua & Barbuda ranked second at 17.95% ($3.96 million), a far more typical result given the close regional trade ties among Eastern Caribbean islands that share membership in the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States. France followed at 9.36% ($2.06 million), reflecting Dominica's proximity to the French territories of Martinique and Guadeloupe, both a short ferry ride away and long-standing trading partners for smaller regional goods. The United States took 7.97% ($1.76 million), and St. Lucia added 7.10% ($1.57 million). An unspecified "Areas, nes" customs category, covering shipments not broken out by destination, made up 6.57% ($1.45 million).
Barbados added 6.47% ($1.43 million), and Guyana contributed 4.91% ($1.08 million). St. Kitts & Nevis took 4.33% ($954,677.56), and the British Virgin Islands closed out the top ten at 2.43% ($536,686.13). Together, Iceland, Antigua and Barbuda, and France made up 48.73% of the total, meaning close to half of everything Dominica shipped abroad went to just three destinations.
Machinery Edges Out Fruit, and a Coconut Soap Factory Ships by the Millions
Machinery and mechanical appliances led every export category, worth $5.00 million, or 22.69% of total export value, driven largely by that same crane and lifting-equipment trade with Iceland. Fruit and nuts followed close behind at 22.09% ($4.87 million), a far more traditional Caribbean export and closer to what most people would expect from a small volcanic island economy built around agriculture. Vegetables added 11.34% ($2.50 million).
Soap and related preparations ranked fourth at 10.78% ($2.38 million). Dominica Coconut Products is behind most of that number. The soap manufacturer, controlled by Colgate-Palmolive, has an agreement to sell an estimated 3 million bars of coconut soap each year to Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines. That single arrangement likely explains why a tiny island economy exports enough soap to place fourth on this list. Tanning and dyeing extracts, dyes, and paints added 9.14% ($2.01 million). Coffee, tea, and spices contributed 5.64% ($1.24 million).
Electrical machinery took 3.32% ($732,298.90), and vehicles added 2.57% ($566,316.10). Plastics contributed 2.42% ($533,644.28), and iron or steel articles closed out the top ten at 1.88% ($413,613.66). On an export base this small, a single large shipment or contract renewal in any one category can swing the rankings meaningfully from one year to the next.
A Total That Jumped in 2022, Then Eased Back
Dominica's export total moved through two distinct phases across the five years of data available here. It held roughly flat from 2019 through 2021. The total was $13.21 million in 2019. It dipped slightly to $13.14 million in 2020, likely reflecting the same global pandemic disruption that hit most small trading economies that year. It recovered to $14.15 million in 2021, still well below where it would soon climb.
The total then climbed sharply to $22.40 million in 2022, a new high for the five-year window and a jump of several million dollars in a single year. It eased back slightly after that, landing at $22.04 million in 2023, down 1.62% year over year. That 2023 dip is a modest pullback rather than a reversal of the broader shift. The total still sits well above where it stood before 2022, even after the small decline.
Given how concentrated this dataset is around a handful of large partners and categories, small shifts at the top can move the whole picture. A change in demand from Iceland's construction-equipment buyers, or a shift in Royal Caribbean's soap order volumes, could move Dominica's total more than any broad change across the rest of the island's economy. That's simply what a $22 million export base built on a handful of large, specific relationships looks like: a few contracts carry outsized weight, and next year's total will likely hinge on whether those same relationships hold rather than on any broad economic trend.