Belize’s traditional exports, including citrus, bananas, sugar, and marine products, face decline

Published by BBNTEAM at September 20, 2023

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Posted: Wednesday, September 20, 2023. 10:41 am CST.

By Zoila Palma Gonzalez: The Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) data released for July 2023 indicated that imports were up by 6.9% and domestic exports were down by 31%.

Total domestic exports for July 2023 amounted to $29.4 million, down by 31.2 percent or $13.3 million when compared to exports for July 2022, which were valued at $42.8 million.

According to the SIB, revenues were down across all the country’s major exports during the month.

Earnings from sugar declined by $5.5 million, from $11.8 million in July 2022 to $6.4 million in July 2023, owing mostly to the differences in the timing of sugar shipments between last year and this year.

Citrus exports also decreased by $2.4 million, from $4.8 million to $2.4 million, mainly due to reduced exports of orange concentrate and orange oil.

In addition, exports from marine products went down by $1.7 million, from $5.9 million to $4.2 million, the combined effect of no whole lobster exports being recorded for July of this year and lower world market prices for lobster tails.

Banana exports declined slightly from $7.2 million to $6.8 million, while animal feed exports dropped notably from $4.4 million in July 2022 to $1.2 million in July 2023.

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