Guyana’s goods exports rose by 28.9 per cent in the first half of 2026, while imports fell by 27.6 per cent compared with the same period last year, according to the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
The bank’s Trade and Integration Monitor 2026 shows that export growth picked up after Guyana shipped US$23.2 billion in goods in 2025, an increase of 20.8 per cent over 2024. Expanding oil production helped Guyana account for 62 per cent of Caribbean goods exports that year.
The IDB estimated that Caribbean goods exports grew by 19.1 per cent in the first half of 2026, with Guyana and Suriname driving almost all of the increase.
Imports moved in the opposite direction. Guyana imported US$10.2 billion in goods in 2025, up 41.3 per cent from the previous year. The IDB pointed to “exceptionally high imports in May 2025” as a factor in the sharp decline recorded in the first half of 2026, since that spike raised the starting point for the year-on-year comparison.
Guyana and Argentina were the only countries in the IDB’s comparison to record a drop in imports over the period. The bank estimated that Caribbean imports fell by 4.6 per cent, largely because of Guyana, while imports rose in the other Caribbean countries for which data were available.
The IDB also flagged Guyana’s exposure to swings in fuel prices as oil accounts for a growing share of the country’s exports.
