The economy of St. Lucia is dependent on agriculture and tourism. The small-scale manufacturing sector also contributes to the country’s economy.

Gross domestic product (GDP)

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2010 was recorded as XCD 1.54 billion, in comparison to XCD 1.53 billion in 2009. The GDP growth rate in 2010 was estimated at 1.14% as compared to -5.21% in 2009.

e = estimated

(Source: IMF) 

Gross national income (GNI) per capita PPP

The GNI at per capita PPP, was recorded at USD 8,652 in 2010, which reflected a decrease as compared to USD 8,840 in 2005.

(Source: UNDP)

Income tax

The rate of tax on Individual incomes in St. Lucia ranges from 10 to 30%. The tax is levied on income exceeding XCD 16,400 per annum.

(Source:irdstlucia.gov.lc, estandardsforum.org)

Corporate tax

Standard corporate tax in St. Lucia is 30.30%.

 

Tax Rates
Tax contribution	Total tax rate (% profit)
Social security contributions	5.6
Property transfer tax (stamp duty)	2.5
Property tax	0.3
Vehicle tax	0.1

 

(Source: irdstlucia.gov.lc, doingbusiness.org) 

Inflation rate

The inflation rate in August 2010 was 0.75%, which reflected an increase compared to -0.21% in the corresponding period of 2009.

(Source: Central Bank)

FDI inflow

The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in 2010 was recorded at XCD 267.45 million, as compared to XCD 168.9 million in 2009.

 

 (Source: Central Bank)

Portfolio investment

The portfolio investment in the country was XCD -22.48 million in 2010, as compared to XCD -23.5 million in 2009.

(Source: Central Bank)

Banking sector assets

The table below displays the assets of the Commercial bank of Saint Lucia.

 

Balance Sheet – Assets of Commercial Bank of Saint Lucia (XCD million)
	December 2010	December 2009
Claims on Central Bank	290.63	263.93
Other local banks	7.06	22.01
Other ECCB area banks	289.72	274.28
Loans and Advances	4,004.77	3,914.43
Investments	222.93	220.31
Foreign Assets	362.77	354.97
Other Assets	383.51	421.96
Total Assets	5,561.41	5,471.90

 (Source: Central Bank)

Consumer Price Index

The Consumer Price Index has increased from 105.36 in August 2009 to 107.93 in August 2010 indicating a constant increase in the prices of consumer goods.

 (Source: Central Bank)

Interest rates on deposits

The average weighted interest rate on deposits in the country is 3.14%.

(Source: Central Bank)

(Source: Central Bank)

Money Supply

         

(Source: Central Bank)

Government Expenditure

The total expenditure in 2010 was recorded at XCD 1,063 million reflecting a decline, compared to XCD 947 million in 2009.

(Source: IMF)

Official exchange rate

The exchange rate as on April 2011 was XCD 2.6882 per USD buying and XCD 2.7169 per USD selling.

(Source: Central Bank)

Government Financial well-being

 Fiscal balance

The fiscal balance is constantly reflecting a decline for recent years. The fiscal deficit has increased from 6.09% of GDP in 2009 to -7.18% of GDP in 2010.

(Source: IMF)

Total Revenue

The total revenue has increased from XCD 786 million in 2009 to XCD 866 million in 2010.

(Source: IMF)

Tax revenue

The revenue from tax in the second quarter of 2010 was recorded at XCD 185.44 million as compared to XCD 169.5 million in the corresponding period of 2009.

(Source: Central Bank)

Current Account Balance

The current account balance in the year 2010 is estimated at -21.25% of the GDP as compared to -20.03% in 2009.

(Source: IMF)

Balance of Payments

(Source: Central Bank)

The country’s total labour force in 2007 was 85,260 comprising 50.5% of the total population. Of the total labour force 72,780 were employed.

(Source: National Statistics)

Unemployment Rate

(Source: National Statistics)

The unemployment in 2007 was recorded at 14.6% as compared to 13.7% in the previous year.

In 2008, the participation rate of male labour force was 78.2% and of female labour force was 51.1%. In 2007, the total labour force participation rate was 75.9%. (Source: UN)

Minimum wage

The minimum wage in the country for office clerks was XCD 300 per month, for shop assistants XCD 200 per month and for messengers XCD 160 per month. (Source: state.gov)

Level of Unionisation

The major trade unions in the country include:

• National Workers Union - St. Lucia (NWU)
• St. Lucia Seamen, Waterfront & General Workers' Trade Union (SWGWTU)

(Source: ICFTU)

The government of St. Lucia is a constitutional monarchy, wherein Queen Elizabeth is the head of state. The Queen is represented by a Governor General. The Prime minister is the head of the government.

(Source: commonwealth-of-nations.org)

The country’s parliament is bicameral and includes the Senate and the House of Assembly. The Senate has 11 members, appointed for a term of five years. Of the 11 members of Senate, six are appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minster, three on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition and two by the Governor General. The House of Assembly has 18 members, directly elected for a term of five years.

(Source: IPU)

The major political parties in the country include:

• United Workers Party (UWP)
• Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP)
• National Alliance
• Saint Lucia Freedom Party

(Source: caricom.org)

Regulatory Environment

The country’s economic freedom score is 70.8, making it 26^th freest economy in the 2011 Index of Economic Freedom. St. Lucia ranks 2^nd out of 29 countries in the South and Central America/Caribbean region.

Corruption perception

St. Lucia is not ranked in the Corruption Perception Index 2010. However, in the 2009 index, it was ranked 22^nd with a score of 7, which indicates the perceived levels of corruption in the country is low.

(Source: transparency.org)

Freedom of Information

The restriction on media in St. Lucia is limited. The media in the country are mainly private owned. In 2006, the parliament cancelled the media legislation, under which individuals were jailed for publishing false news.

The various newspapers in the country include:

• The Voice
• The Mirror
• The Star
• The Crusader
• The Vanguard
• One Caribbean

(Source: BCC)

Judicial system

The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is the supreme judicial organ in the Caribbean Community and the final court of appeal for the member states in the community.

The judicial system of the country is composed of a High Court and District courts. The cases are appealed in the Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal and are reviewed in the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London.    

The Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (ECSC) is a superior judicial tribunal for the nine independent countries in the Eastern Caribbean. St. Lucia is one of these nine countries.

(Source: eccourts.org, stepjournal.org, caribbeancourtofjustice.org)

The total population in 2010 was recorded at 0.173 million, as compared to 0.172 million in 2009.

(Source: IMF, World Bank)

In 2009, there were about 95.9 males for every 100 females in the country, which indicates a imbalanced gender ratio in the country.

(Source: UN)

In 2009, the population below 14 years of age in the country was 26.3% of the total population.

(Source: UN)

The crude birth and death rate in the year 2009 was registered at 18 (per thousand people) and 6 (per thousand people) respectively.

(Source: UNICEF)

In 2010, the infant mortality rate was registered at 12.6 deaths per thousand live births.

In 2010, the average life expectancy in the country for males was 71.9 years and for females it was 75.6 years.

(Source: UN)

International migrant stock till mid 2010 was recorded at 10,200 people, constituting about 8.7% of the total population.

The average annual growth rate of the urban population between 2005 to 2010 was 1.4%.

(Source: UN)

The various ethnic groups in the country include people of African descent, people of East Indian descent and Europeans. Roman Catholic is the major religion in the country.

(Source: state.gov)

Soft Infrastructure

Literacy rate

The adult literacy rate of St. Lucia is estimated to be 94.8%. (Source: UNDP)

Education resources

The expenditure on education in 2008 amounted to 6.3% of GDP. Education is compulsory in the country for children aged between 5 years to 15 years.

The net enrolment in primary education was 91% for females and 92% for males. The enrolment in secondary education was 88% for females and 76% for males. The tertiary education registered a gross enrolment of 15%.

(Source:  estandardsforum.org)

Healthcare

The total expenditure on healthcare system in 2007 was 6.3% of GDP.

In 2008, about 18 cases of tuberculosis diseases were registered leading to a death rate of 0.94 per 100,000 people in the country. In 2004, the major causes of deaths in the country were cardiovascular diseases (30%) and cancer (20%).

There are two public hospitals and one private hospital in the country with 280 hospital beds per 100,000 people.

(Source: estandardsforum.org)

Buses and taxi are the major medium of public transit within the country.

Ports

The major ports in St. Lucia are: Port Castries, Port of Soufriere, Port of Vieux-Fort and Port of Cul-de-Sac.

(Source: world port source)

Airports

The major airports in the country include:

(Source: Air charter world)

Telecommunications networks

The number of fixed telephone lines in St. Lucia has decreased from 42,000 in 2004 to 41,000 in 2009, registering a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of -0.5%. The usage of fixed telephone lines has declined from 25.67 per 100 inhabitants in 2004, to 23.81 per 100 inhabitants in 2009.

(Source: ITU)

The number of mobile cellular subscriptions rose from 101,000 in 2004 to 176,000 in 2009, registering a CAGR of 11.7%. The ratio of mobile cellular subscriptions to fixed telephone lines was 4.3:1, indicating that the amount of mobile cellular usage in the country is more as compared to the fixed telephone line usage.

(Source: ITU)

The number of internet users in the country has increased from 110,000 in 2009 to 142,100 in 2010 with a penetration rate of 88.8%.

(Source: internetworldstats)