Cayman Islands: Trade Profile

Foreign Trade in Figures

The Cayman Islands are very open to international trade (106.6% of GDP, World Bank – latest data available), on which they are also heavily dependent, especially regarding the imports of consumer goods as well as tourism and financial activities. The Cayman Islands are not a member of the WTO. In 2021, the country’s main exports were electrical machinery and equipment (42.4%), iron and steel (9.5%), optical, photographic, cinematographic, measuring, checking, precision, medical or surgical instruments and apparatus (6%), and copper (5.3%); whereas imports were driven by mineral fuels (10.1%), vehicles (7.6%), machinery (7.5%), plastics (6.4%), and electrical machinery and equipment (5.9% - data ITC 2021).

For 2021, the U.S. were by far the largest import partner, accounting for 81.5% of total imports, followed by Jamaica (3.4%), the UK (2.5%), Mexico, and Japan (1.3% each). The U.S. were also the main destination for the islands’ exports (more than three-quarters of the total), ahead of the UK and Jamaica (data ITC).

The country has a structural trade deficit. According to data by the national Economic and Statistics Office, the total value of goods imported for 2021 increased by 15% to reach USD 1,281.9 million (of which 22.4% comprised machinery and transport equipment); whereas exports of merchandise stood at USD 14.3 million (-19.6% year-on-year). Therefore, the trade deficit expanded by USD 170,4 million, moving from USD 1,097.3 million in 2020 to 1,267.7 million in 2021. Preliminary figures show that in the first nine months of 2022, Mauritius imported USD 1,105 million worth of goods (+20% vis-à-vis the same period one year earlier).

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Main Services

3.3 bn USD of services exported in 2020
Financial servicesFinancial services	42.48%
Other business servicesOther business services	25.68%
Insurance servicesInsurance services	20.85%
TravelTravel +	7.51%
Personal travelPersonal travel	7.13%
OtherOther	90.81%
Business travelBusiness travel	0.38%
TransportationTransportation	1.68%
Construction servicesConstruction services	0.68%
Royalties and license feesRoyalties and license fees	0.57%
Computer and information servicesComputer and information services	0.51%
Government servicesGovernment services	0.04%
Cultural and recreational servicesCultural and recreational services	n/a%

1.3 bn USD of services imported in 2020
Other business servicesOther business services	25.67%
Insurance servicesInsurance services	23.45%
Financial servicesFinancial services	15.32%
TravelTravel +	11.57%
Personal travelPersonal travel	11.25%
OtherOther	78.66%
Business travelBusiness travel	0.32%
TransportationTransportation	9.77%
Royalties and license feesRoyalties and license fees	7.14%
Computer and information servicesComputer and information services	5.35%
Cultural and recreational servicesCultural and recreational services	0.72%
Government servicesGovernment services	0.52%
Construction servicesConstruction services	0.50%

Source: United Nations Statistics Division, Latest Available Data

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Trade Compliance

International Economic Cooperation: The Cayman Islands do not belong to any customs union but are an associate member of the Carribean Community Single Market (CARICOM).
Useful Resources: Cayman Islands Customs (en anglais)
National Organisation of Intellectual Property: Company Registry

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