The economy will decline by -18.4 percent in 2020
WILLEMSTAD - The Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) hereby presents the official figures of economic development for the year 2020. This information is compiled based on the figures of the Business Survey (which the CBS carries out twice a year) and data from the volume indicators of companies.
Economic development in 2020
A severe downturn in economic activities produced a contraction in gross domestic product (GDP) of 18.4 percent in 2020. This remarkable contraction has never been experienced in Curaçao in recent years. After 4 consecutive years of decline in the economy (2016, -1.0%; 2017, -1.7%; 2018, -2.2%; 2019, -3.4%), Curaçao is entering a deep corona recession, this means that the size of the economy (i.e. GDP) is much smaller than in the previous year.
The first preliminary calculations aimed at economic development in Curaçao relate to real developments, i.e. they have been adjusted for price developments. Economic growth is calculated based on the volume growth in the production process and the economic development.
The economic development of some industries
The COVID-19 pandemic has mainly caused a decline in economic activity in almost all industries in 2020. Here is a brief overview of the noteworthy developments in 2020:
The industry's persistent shortfall continued into a 56 percent decline in the Industry sector. The main cause is the shutdown of the oil refining activities in 2020. Other industrial activities in this sector that have declined due to their sales markets are also temporarily closed in 2020.
The activities in the trade decreased sharply by almost 21 percent. The decrease was caused by a decrease in goods imports and the various trading activities of the companies.
The trend in the Transport & Communications industry shows a continued decline of almost 23 percent in economic activities compared to the previous year. In transport, activities in the port and airport have generally declined. Port activities have been particularly hard hit with the tankers, other ships piloted in have also declined in large numbers. One should think here of the calculated influence of the absence of a refinery. Cruise calls and passenger numbers have become nil as of April 2020 after the pandemic outbreak. Air transport activities declined because of a decrease in passenger numbers and landings, and as a result there was less air freight. In the information and communication sector, on the other hand, an increase is observed in 2020.
The hospitality sector (provision of services in accommodation and meals activities) belonging to the tourism sector, has fallen sharply in 2020. The activities in the hotels and restaurant sector have decreased sharply compared to the year 2019, which showed a growth (4.9 %). In 2020, the total number of overnight stays by tourists and the total number of visitors decreased by 58 percent and 62 percent respectively. This decline has been accompanied by the availability of air transport, which has been halted in many regions due to pandemic precautions. The restaurants and cafes were also under pressure, they were not fully operational and were limited by opening hours, number of customers and type of service. Taken together, these developments lead to a drop in value added in the hotels and restaurants industry of almost 20 percent.
The Business services (real estate activities; professional, scientific, and technical activities; administrative and support activities) was also hard hit with a contraction of more than 29 percent.