01Key Takeaways
- Saint Lucia exported $67.42 million worth of goods in 2020, down 30.7% from $97.26 million in 2019, the most recent year with verified trade data available in this dataset.
- Beverages, spirits and vinegar led export categories at 21.8% ($14.71 million), well ahead of every other category.
- The USA took 28.0% of exports ($18.90 million), the largest single destination.
- Trinidad and Tobago ranked second among partners at 12.0% ($8.12 million), one of five Caribbean nations in the top ten destinations.
022-Year Trend
| Year | 2019 | 2020 |
|---|---|---|
| Value | $97.3M | $67.4M |
03Top Export Markets (2020)
| Rank | Partner | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | $18.9M | 28.0% |
| 2 | Trinidad & Tobago | $8.1M | 12.0% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | $6.0M | 9.0% |
| 4 | Barbados | $5.6M | 8.3% |
| 5 | Dominica | $4.9M | 7.3% |
| 6 | Guyana | $4.7M | 6.9% |
| 7 | St. Vincent & Grenadines | $3.3M | 4.9% |
| 8 | France | $3.0M | 4.4% |
| 9 | Antigua & Barbuda | $2.2M | 3.2% |
| 10 | Grenada | $2.0M | 3.0% |
04Top Export Categories (2020)
| Rank | Category | Value | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beverages, Spirits and Vinegar | $14.7M | 21.8% |
| 2 | Edible Fruit and Nuts; Peel of Citrus Fruit or Melons | $5.8M | 8.6% |
| 3 | 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 | $4.7M | 7.0% |
| 4 | Natural or Cultured Pearls, Precious or Semi-Precious Stones, Precious Metals, Metals Clad with Precious Metal, and Articles thereof; Imitation Jewellery; Coin | $4.0M | 5.9% |
| 5 | Paper and Paperboard; Articles of Paper Pulp, of Paper or of Paperboard | $3.2M | 4.8% |
| 6 | Tanning or Dyeing Extracts; Tannins and their Derivatives; Dyes, Pigments and other Colouring Matter; Paints and Varnishes; Putty and other Mastics; Inks | $2.8M | 4.1% |
| 7 | Salt; Sulphur; Earths and Stone; Plastering Materials, Lime and Cement | $2.7M | 4.0% |
| 8 | Clocks and Watches and parts thereof | $2.6M | 3.9% |
| 9 | Mineral Fuels, Mineral Oils and Products of their Distillation; Bituminous Substances; Mineral Waxes | $2.3M | 3.4% |
| 10 | Ships, Boats and Floating Structures | $2.0M | 2.9% |
05Trade Partner Map
06Analysis
Exports Fell Sharply in the Most Recent Verified Year
Saint Lucia exported $67.42 million worth of goods in 2020, down 30.7% from $97.26 million in 2019. This dataset's coverage for Saint Lucia runs from 2019 through 2020 only, two confirmed years rather than the five-year window available for most other countries here, and 2020 is the most recent year with verified data.
Export value fell from $97.26 million in 2019 to $67.42 million in 2020, a decline of close to a third. This dataset does not include information explaining what drove that drop. Because coverage stops at 2020, these figures describe a specific two-year snapshot rather than a longer trend or current export activity.
Beverages Lead a List of Small, Varied Export Categories
Beverages, spirits and vinegar led every export category in 2020, worth $14.71 million, or 21.8% of the total, well ahead of the next-largest group. Saint Lucia is home to Saint Lucia Distillers, whose Chairman's Reserve brand has won international rum competition trophies, a well-known example of the beverage exports this category covers. Fruit and nuts contributed 8.6% ($5.80 million), and electrical machinery and equipment added 7.0% ($4.74 million). Natural and precious stones, metals and jewellery contributed 5.9% ($4.00 million).
Paper and paperboard added 4.8% ($3.21 million), and tanning or dyeing extracts, dyes and paints contributed 4.1% ($2.78 million). Salt, sulphur and earthy materials added 4.0% ($2.68 million), and clocks and watches contributed 3.9% ($2.63 million). Mineral fuels added 3.4% ($2.29 million), and ships, boats and floating structures closed out the top ten at 2.9% ($1.98 million).
A list topped by beverages but followed by a wide spread of smaller categories, from electronics to ships, describes a small, diversified export economy rather than one built around a single dominant industry.
The USA and Trinidad and Tobago Lead a Regional Partner List
United States was Saint Lucia's largest export destination in 2020, absorbing 28.0% of the total, worth $18.90 million. Trinidad & Tobago ranked second at 12.0% ($8.12 million), and the United Kingdom followed at 9.0% ($6.05 million). Together, those three destinations made up 49.1% of total export value.
Barbados added 8.3% ($5.57 million), and Dominica contributed 7.3% ($4.90 million). Guyana added 6.9% ($4.66 million), and St. Vincent & Grenadines contributed 4.9% ($3.29 million). France added 4.4% ($2.95 million), and Antigua & Barbuda contributed 3.2% ($2.19 million). Grenada closed out the top ten at 3.0% ($2.04 million).
A partner list where five of the top ten destinations, Trinidad and Tobago, Dominica, Guyana, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada, are fellow Caribbean nations describes an export economy closely tied to regional trade alongside its larger US and UK markets.