Jamaica’s Finance and the Public Service Minister, Dr Nigel Clarke, says the island opened the 2020/21 fiscal year with cash reserves of approximately $90 billion, or more than 4% of GDP. Clarke attributed this was to the policy of amassing the country’s cash reserves to pay down debt.
This resulted in Jamaica’s ability to finance a 3.5% fiscal deficit without materially increasing nominal debt. In addition, Clarke said the country’s stock of foreign-denominated debt decreased during the fiscal year.
“This compares with previous economic crises where nominal USD debt increased during the crisis…this time…in the worst economic crisis in our history, nominal USD debt actually decreased,” Clarke said. (LOOP)
Extract from the CARICOM BUSINESS Newsletter Vol 4 No 10
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