Wednesday, January 14, 2015 . BY RICHARD BROWNE Business editor browner@jamaicaobserver.com
BYLES… oil at US$50 per barrel means that Jamaica’s current account deficit is going to improve dramatically
DESPITE a greater than expected contraction in the economy, Jamaica is in a strong position heading into the final quarter, especially due to lower oil prices, according to Richard Byles, co-chairman of the Economic Programme Oversight Committee (EPOC). Jamaica had negative GDP growth of 1.4 per cent for the July to September 2014 quarter, according to the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN). That was “even greater” than the negative 0.8 per cent previously expected by the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Byles said.
