BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THOUGH recent economic times have stricken the Federation with adverse spinoffs, a recent study undertaken by the University of the West Indies (UWI) reveals that companies in St. Kitts-Nevis managed to weather the crisis much better than those in the region.
The study, dubbed the Corporate Performance and Outlook Report, was carried out by the Department of Management Studies UWI (Cave Hill Campus) and assessed data from some 758 companies in Barbados and the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) during September 2009.
Despite economic slowdown in many countries around the world, the report shows that the majority of companies in St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada and Dominica witnessed either unchanged or improved financial performances for the period March to August 2009.
This did not hold true for majority of companies in St. Lucia, Antigua and Barbuda, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Barbados, as almost two-thirds of those companies recorded worsening financial performances over the same period.
The decline in financial performance is reflected throughout the region, affecting a number of key industries. According to the report, entertainment, education and cultural service industries were able to weather the storm, while industries like wholesale, real estate and tourism saw worsening financial performances over the six-month period.
For the next six months, the majority of companies in St. Kitts-Nevis, St. Lucia, Dominica and St. Vincent and the Grenadines expect the decline in financial performance to continue while those in Grenada, Barbados and Antigua expect financial performance to improve.
Most of the surveyed companies have noted their hope of an economic recovery within 12 months.
Information on investment outlook was also assessed. The report found that St. Kitts and Nevis had the “most optimistic” investment outlook for the upcoming year.
Many of the companies in Barbados and the OECS expect the level of employment in the private sector to remain unchanged or increase slightly in the next six months.
“Companies in St. Kitts and Nevis and Barbados are the most optimistic about employment prospects over the next six months….This suggests that companies do not plan major layoffs, despite the fact that they have experienced worsening financial performance over the last six months, and expect financial performance to continue to worsen over the next six months,” the report said.
The survey is aimed at providing policymakers with timely and readily accessible information on the financial performance, investment outlook and the local economic outlook. Fifty-one companies in the Federation were surveyed, which represents 6.7% of the total group of companies surveyed.
The report will be published on a quarterly basis. Data will next be collected in January of 2010 and a report published in February 2010.
