–         Export earnings expanded by 34.6 percent to US$533.1 million
Guyana’s economy grew by 5.9 percent in the first half of the year, building on the achievement of five consecutive years of positive growth since 2006 and giving a positive prognosis for end of year results.
The achievement of this level of growth in the first half was described by Minister of Finance Dr. Ashni Singh as most commendable, and was reported in the 2011 Mid-Year Report 2011 tabled by the Minister in the National Assembly yesterday.
The report said that underlying this overall expansion in real gross domestic product in the first half of 2011 was growth in the non-sugar sectors of five percent, while the sugar sector contributed to the overall acceleration of growth.

The report said that, as a result of this positive performance and given the updated outlook for the various productive sectors, the economy is projected to grow by 5.1 percent in 2011. The report said that the non-sugar sector is projected to grow at 3.4 percent, revised upward from the original projection of 4.6 percent and 2.8 percent at the time of the budget of 2011. Export earnings expanded by 34.6 percent to US$533.1 million.
The report said export earnings from sugar increased by 32.4 percent to US$50.1 million, reflecting a 30.4 percent increase in quantity shipped to 99,738 tonnes.
The Mid-Year Report said that in the first half of 2011, the sugar industry showed tentative signs that the path to recovery has commenced.
“The sector returned a 2011 first crop of 106,871 tonnes, reflecting a 30.5 percent increase over the first crop of 2010 and the best first crop performance since 2004,” the report said.
“The industry continues to emphasize that if workers maximize the opportunity days available for harvesting for the second crop, the [target] of 298,879 tonnes is achievable,” the report said, adding that the recent conclusion of an agreement between the unions and the sugar corporation on wages and salaries for 2011 is likely to be helpful in achieving the target.
It said that rice continued its trend of successful first crops, with the industry coming off a remarkable production performance in 2010. The 2011 first crop was 207,514 tonnes, 23 percent higher than at the corresponding period in 2010, and the highest first crop in the industry’s history, the report said.
The report said that rice export earnings expanded by 35.1 percent to US$92.6 million, mainly attributed to a 26.4 percent increase in average export price to US$551.4 per tone, coupled with a 6.8 percent increase in export volume to 167,945 tonnes.
It said that the performance of the sector is attributable mainly to improvements in drainage and irrigation as a result of government’s investments, the development of new and more tolerant rice strains, higher yields and higher acreage of paddy planted.

Though production in the livestock industry was targeted to remain stable through 2011, the report said that for the first half of the year, overall production levels actually increased by 2.7 percent, with increases in poultry meat, table eggs, mutton and beef, while pork production declined. Fish also suffered a decline in production, having been projected to grow by 0.4 percent.
The report said that in the forest sector, during the first half of 2011, production of logs, lumber and roundwood all contracted, resulting in an overall negative growth in the industry of 30.3 percent.
“Notwithstanding the resumed production of plywood manufacturing operations, sustained international demand for several of Guyana’s traditional species now boosted by the penetration of Guyana’s lesser used species into the international market and attendant improvements in international market prices, the sector is now projected to contract by 19.9 percent by yearend compared to an earlier projected contraction of 1.4 percent,” the report said.
It said in the mining and quarrying sector, bauxite production reached a total of 815,505 tonnes at the half year, an increase of 38.6 percent compared to the same period in 2010. “While both [RUSAL and BOSAI] have posted higher production, the increases came largely from the two lower valued products,” the report said. It said that the projected growth rate for value-added in the bauxite industry is 13.4 percent.
Total gold production in the first half of 2011 was 163,413 ounces, an increase of 14.9 percent over 2010. “With gold prices hovering firmly above US$1,500 per ounce and approaching US$1,800 per ounce in the post mid-year period, there is every incentive to invest and operate in the industry…gold production is now projected to reach 320,000 ounces resulting in an upward revision in the industry’s projection,” the report stated.

It said too, that the average export price of gold witnessed a 29.1 percent increase to US$1,370.3 per ounce, contributing to a 56.4 percent increase in export earnings to US$229.5 million.
The report said expectations for the wholesale and retail sector were exceeded with robust growth of 21.7 percent being recorded for the half year.
Turning to the achievements in the financial sector, the report said that deposits of the private, public and non-bank financial institutions increased during the review period, and led to total resident deposits expanding by 7 percent to $253.2 billion.
It said private sector deposits, which accounted for 77.9 percent of total resident deposits, increased by 8 percent. Private sector credit grew by 6.7 percent and amounted to $119.8 billion at end June 2011.