285653
English (official), Bajan (English-based creole language, widely spoken in informal settings)
BRIDGETOWN (capital) 90,000 (2014)
- Conventional long form
- none
- Conventional short form
- Barbados
- Local long form
- Local short form
parliamentary democracy (Parliament) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm
- Name
- Bridgetown
- Geographic coordinates
- 13 06 N, 59 37 W
- Time difference
- UTC-4 (1 hour ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
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, the economy has grown due to increases in tourist arrivals, construction, financial services and exports. However, Barbados’ high public debt to GDP ratio and falling international reserves remain areas of concern. Growth prospects are limited because of a weak economic outlook.
- Inflation
- -1.061%
- Total tax rate (% of commercial profits)
- 34.7%
- Real Interest Rate
- 5.775%
- Manufacturing, value added (% of GDP)
- 4.26%
- Current Account Balance
- US$ -248,161,275
- Labor Force, Total
- 151,973
- Employment in Agriculture
- 2.89%
- Employment in Industry
- 19.34%
- Employment in Services
- 77.69%
- Unemployment Rate
- 11.39%
- Imports of goods and services
- US$ 2,041,594,850
- Exports of goods and services
- US$ 1,635,740,100
- Total Merchandise Trade
- 47.08%
- FDI, net inflows
- US$ 254,424,002
- Commercial Service Exports
- US$ 1,385,498,227
sugarcane, vegetables, cotton
tourism, sugar, light manufacturing, component assembly for export
- Commodities
- manufactures, sugar, molasses, rum, other foodstuffs and beverages, chemicals, electrical components
- Partners
- Trinidad and Tobago 22.7%, US 11.9%, St. Lucia 9.3%, St. Vincent and the Grenadines 5.8%, Antigua and Barbuda 4.7%, St. Kitts and Nevis 4.4%, Guyana 4.3% (2015)
- Commodities
- consumer goods, machinery, foodstuffs, construction materials, chemicals, fuel, electrical components
- Partners
- Trinidad and Tobago 39%, US 31.1% (2015)