BEST’S COUNTRY RISK REPORT
BEST'S COUNTRY RISK REPORT
Barbados CRT-4
August 26, 2021 Region: Caribbean Country Risk Criteria Procedures Guide to Best's Country Risk Tiers
? The Country Risk Tier (CRT) reflects AM Best's assessment of three categories of risk: Economic, Political, and Financial System Risk.
? Barbados, a CRT-4 country, has a moderate level of political risk and high levels of economic and financial system risk.
? Barbados, an independent member of the British Commonwealth, has a large offshore financial services sector with participation from banks and insurance companies, most of which are of US or Canadian origin.
? GDP contracted 17.6% in 2020 and is forecast to grow by 4.1% in 2021 and 7.7% in 2022.
? The map depicts the countries in the Caribbean AM Best evaluates for country risk.
Nominal GDP Population GDP Per Capita Real GDP Growth Inflation Rate
Literacy Rate Urbanization Dependency Ratio Life Expectancy Median Age
Vital Statistics USD bn mil USD % %
United Nations Estimates % % % Years Years
Insurance Statistics
4.37 0.3
15,163 -17.6 2.9
99.6 31.2 24.3 79.2 40.5
Insurance Regulator
Financial Services Commission
Premiums Written (Life)
USD mil
129
Premiums Written (Non-Life)
USD mil
237
Premiums Growth
%
6.4
Regional Comparison
Country Risk Tier
Barbados
CRT-4
Antigua & Barbuda
CRT-4
Bahamas
CRT-3
Cayman Islands
CRT-2
Jamaica
CRT-4
Trinidad and Tobago
CRT-4
Source: IMF, UN, Swiss Re, Axco and AM Best
Economic Risk
Political Risk
Financial System Risk
Country Risk Tier 1 (CRT-1) Very Low Level of Country Risk Country Risk Tier 2 (CRT-2) Low Level of Country Risk Country Risk Tier 3 (CRT-3) Moderate Level of Country Risk Country Risk Tier 4 (CRT-4) High Level of Country Risk Country Risk Tier 5 (CRT-5) Very High Level of Country Risk
Regional Summary: Caribbean
? The countries in the Caribbean vary by cultural origin, economic foundation, and population affluence, but their long-term growth and stability depend highly on their larger regional neighbors.
? Many Caribbean countries depend on tourism for economic growth. Natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic have highlighted the region's dependence on this sector, as well as its vulnerability. Those that do not rely on tourism depend largely on commodity exports, which makes them sensitive to changes in global demand. According to IMF forecasts, economies dependent on tourism contracted by approximately 10%, and economies dependent on commodities contracted by 0.2% in 2020.
? The Caribbean is highly vulnerable to natural disasters and climate change. In addition to the record hurricane season of 2020, there have been three Category 5 hurricanes in the region since 2017. These weather events have the potential to cause damage equal to, or greater than, the country's GDP.
Bahamas
Cuba
Cayman Islands
Jamaica Honduras
Nicaragua
Costa Rica Panama
Turks and Caicos
British
Haiti
Dominican Republic
Virgin
Islands
Puerto Rico
Anguilla St. Maarten
Antigua & Barbuda St Kitts & Nevis
Dominica
St Vincent & the Grenadines St Lucia
Curacao Grenada
Barbados
Venezuela
Trinidad & Tobago
Guyana Suriname
Colombia
SINCE 1899
Copyright ? 2020 A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No portion of this content may be reproduced, distributed, or stored in a database or retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of AM Best. While the content was obtained from sources believed to be reliable, its accuracy is not guaranteed. For additional details, refer to our Terms of Use available at the AM Best website: terms.
BEST'S COUNTRY RISK REPORT
Economic Growth (%)
15
Real GDP
CPI Inflation
10
5
0 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026
-5
-10
-15
-20
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook and AM Best
Political Risk Summary
Score 1 (best) to 5 (worst)
World Average Barbados
International Transactions Policy
5
Legal System
4
Monetary Policy
3
2
Regional Stability
1
Fiscal Policy
0
Social Stability Government Stability
Source: AM Best
Business Environment Labor Flexibility
GDP Per Capita and Population
100,000
GDP Per Capita Population
3
90,000
2.5 80,000
70,000 2
60,000
USD
50,000
1.5
40,000
1 30,000
20,000 0.5
10,000
0 Barbados
Antigua & Barbuda
Bahamas
Source: IMF and AM Best
Cayman Islands
0 Jamaica Trinidad and
Tobago
Millions
Barbados
Economic Risk: High
? The economy has been in contraction since 2017 due to reconstruction following Hurricane Irma, and fiscal policy needs to be tightened to lower debt levels. COVID-19 exacerbated the slowdown, with a GDP contraction of 17.6% in 2020. A recovery of 4.1% is forecast in 2021.
? With tourism accounting for over 35% of GDP, the economy suffered greatly in 2020. The first quarter of 2021 registered a 96% contraction year-over-year in tourism output. The severe drop in tourism industry also affected other sectors.
? GDP per capita is among the highest in the region because of a highly educated population and sound infrastructure, among other reasons.
? Barbados was granted USD968 million in budgetary support from multilateral institutions in 2020. In addition, the IMF agreed to revise fiscal targets under the Extended Fund Facility agreement. The IMF recognizes the progress Barbados is making towards its economic recovery and transformation program despite the global economic environment.
Political Risk: Moderate
? Prime Minister Mia Mottley was elected in May 2018, and her party achieved an overwhelming majority in the House of Assembly. The former Parliament was dissolved in March 2018.
? The increase in violent crime and the murder rate is a growing concern, as the country is a trafficking route. However, neither social nor political unrest is common, and strikes and protests are typically resolved quickly and peacefully.
? In the World Bank's most recent Ease of Doing Business survey, Barbados ranked 128th out of 190 countries. Barbados scores poorly on enforcing contracts, dealing with construction permits, obtaining credit, trading across borders, and protecting minority investors. The country score relatively well in the category of resolving insolvency.
? The government is attempting to reform the country's state-owned enterprises by implementing stronger oversight, lowering costs, and reducing government spending.
Financial System Risk: High
? The Financial Services Commission regulates a number of financial services, including insurance and pension business.
? The Central Bank of Barbados oversees a 2:1 peg of the Barbadian dollar to the USD.
? The IMF deal has helped increase international reserves from a low of USD220 million to USD1.3 billion and will allow Barbados to comfortably satisfy external obligations.
SINCE 1899
Page 2 of 2
August 26, 2021
................
................
In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.
To fulfill the demand for quickly locating and searching documents.
It is intelligent file search solution for home and business.
Related download
- understanding crisil s ratings and rating scales
- use of ratings in insurance industry
- 2019 star ratings fact sheet cms
- worst 10 in the worst 10 united states secretary of
- in the midst of the downturn many us mutual life
- the ten worst insurance companies in america
- best s country risk report
- property casualty insurancecompany insolvencies
- 2015 top 40 money managers report td asset management
- guide to best s financial strength ratings fsr
Related searches
- best western country inn north kansas city
- best s p 500 dividend stocks
- best european country to live in
- best europe country to visit
- best recent country songs
- best new country love songs
- best gospel country music while you sleep
- best motivational country songs
- best of country music 2017
- best foreign country for americans to live
- best cross country train usa
- today s stock market report cnn