Jamaican Japanese trade prospects in 2025

 


What prospects are there for increasing trade between Jamaica and Japan? Contrary to widespread beliefs, coffee is one of the smallest revenue segments for Jamaican exports to the nation of Japan.


Trading Economics states that Jamaica Exports of coffee, tea, mate and spices to Japan was US$15.28 Million during 2023, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database last updated on December of 2024.

The most valuable export segment according to the same source are vegetable plaiting materials and vegetable products. The value of these Jamaican exports to Japan was US$492.37 Thousand during 2023, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade.

Prospects for higher demand in Japan are on the upswing for 2025, economists note, based on a third year of price hikes, second year of wage hikes, and the start of interest rate hikes.

www.nomuraconnects.com notes that in addition, Japan also saw increased software investment and labour mobility, strengthened corporate governance, and a diversification of household financial assets, all signals that Japan is headed towards a normal economy.

In 2024 the Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association (JMEA) moved to enhance economic cooperation and bilateral trade between Jamaica and Japan with a courtesy visit to His Excellency Yasuhiro Atsumi, Japanese Ambassador to Jamaica.

During the visit, discussions focused on identifying export opportunities, emphasizing high-quality Jamaican products. The conversations revealed a strong demand in Japan for Jamaican products such as coffee, rums, spirits, seasonings, and condiments. Consideration was also given to non-food products with potential success in the Japanese market.

In 2022, Japan exported $244M to Jamaica. The main products that Japan exported to Jamaica were Cars ($175M), Delivery Trucks ($35.5M), and Buses ($9.96M). Over the past 5 years the exports of Japan to Jamaica have decreased at an annualized rate of 2.92%, from $282M in 2017 to $244M in 2022.

Jumping ahead, In September 2024, Japan exported ¥3.55B and imported ¥384M from Jamaica, resulting in a positive trade balance of ¥3.16B. Between September 2023 and September 2024 the exports of Japan have decreased by ¥-536M (-13.1%) from ¥4.08B to ¥3.55B, while imports decreased by ¥-76.3M (-16.6%) from ¥461M to ¥384M

Trade in the month September 2024, the top exports of Japan to Jamaica were Cars (¥1.46B), Delivery Trucks (¥318M), Commodities not elsewhere specified (¥150M), Buses (¥129M), and Spark-Ignition Engines (¥44.3M). In September 2024 the top imports of Japan from Jamaica were Hard Liquor (¥73.6M), Coffee (¥29.5M), Raw Cotton (¥27.9M), Pepper (¥2.92M), and Collector's Items (¥418k).

In September 2024 the exports of Japan were mainly from Aichi (¥916M), Hyōgo (¥888M), Chiba (¥725M), Kanagawa (¥401M), and Osaka (¥205M), while imports destinations were mainly Hyōgo (¥344M), Kanagawa (¥38.1M), Tokyo (¥868k), Chiba (¥860k), and Aichi (¥552k).

Caribbean Money Daily


Caribabeanmoney.blogspot.com

Follow us for breaking news

email austanny@yahoo.com

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kintyre makes US$300,000 investment in Sevens Ice

Image
  Tyrone Wilson Chairman, President and CEO Kintyre Holdings (JA) Limited (KHL) and Seven Kingston Limited, owners of the Seven Ultra Lounge and Restaurant, on January 14 announced a joint venture to launch Sevens Ice. Kintyre Holdings has made an investment in excess of US$300,000 in acquiring an associate stake in Seven and also establishing the start-up for the ice venture. "This initiative addresses Jamaica’s growing demand for high-quality ice, with operations set to begin in Q1 2025," Wilson stated. Additionally, the venture has acquired a cold storage facility to manage its start-up capacity and is exploring the importation of ice to bridge the gap between demand and supply, ensuring a consistent and reliable market presence. Distribution Expansion Wilson said that Sevens Ice has secured a distribution point in Kingston and is in the process of setting up another in St. Catherine to serve the western and central parts of the island. This expansion will ensure broade...
Read more

BCMG increases risk management oversight: Launches surveys-as-a -service

Image
Insurance brokers in Jamaica often send underwriters themselves to survey risks; however, they frequently do not have the technical knowledge required to produce the best results. BCMG Insurance Brokers Limited (BCMG) in response, introduced - in support of the wider brokerage industry - an updated surveys-as-a service product which has been embraced by the wider community as groundbreaking. Senior Risk Manager on the New Business Team of BCMG David Lazarus explains, “We saw where the technical details and in-depth knowledge of the intricacies of business operations were not always being taken into consideration. This was seen as an opportunity to expand into this space.” In 2020, Billy Craig Insurance Brokers and Maritime General Insurance Brokers, MGI, signed an agreement to merge their operations to form BCMG Insurance Brokers Limited. Following the union, the new company has been exploring options to expand the service capability of the brokerage and increase value for clients...
Read more

Headhunting: The art of finding talent in a shrinking labour market

Image
KPMG, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and BDO -chartered accounting firms and business consultancies - are the main companies to which Jamaican corporates turn for headhunting services. However, there are also sole practitioners who are finding their feet in a climate in which human resource management and talent hunting is in big demand. Also known as an executive search, headhunting differs from traditional recruitment. It is used to hire high level employees such as CEOs. The work of headhunters is getting harder in Jamaica. Wilfred Baghaloo - Partner, Advisory Services - PwC Jamaica comments, “We simply do not have enough qualified persons to provide necessary services to our clients locally and internationally in the financial advisory space. I believe we have reached the point (maybe four years ago) where we need to rethink our working permit immigration plan /approach. “Allowing more immigration and work permits will help us in the financial advisory space and also the country...
Read more