JERSEY’S economy has almost bounced back to pre-pandemic levels, according to recent statistics.
But the report from Statistics Jersey highlights that the Island’s long-term decline in productivity continues.
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased by nearly 11% last year, almost as high as in 2019 before the slowdown in the economy due to Covid-19.
Meanwhile, overall productivity remained over 2% lower than before the pandemic, according to the report, which adds: ‘The long-term decline in productivity has occurred particularly since 2007. Between 2007 and 2021 the productivity of the Island’s economy fell by over a fifth (22%) in real terms.’
Responding to the report, Economic Development Minister Kirsten Morel said: ‘Jersey’s economy has bounced back very strongly, ahead of most other economies around the world. It shows the resilience of our economy.
‘That an economy with a population of only 100,000 people can withstand a shock like the pandemic is something we should all be very proud of.’
Deputy Morel said he thought the slow decline in productivity in Jersey could be traced back to the last financial crash between 2008 and 2010, when interest rates dropped to almost zero.
The effect on the largest part of Jersey’s economy – the financial-services sector – was huge, he said. He added that if the Island’s economy relied more heavily on tourism, like Majorca for example, ‘it would not have bounced back so quickly’.
Deputy Morel said working harder was not the answer to reversing the productivity decline, adding that people in all sectors of the economy were already doing that and agriculture in particular was ‘doing an incredible job’.
‘I want to see all sectors of the economy working smarter now. It’s not about working harder but working more smartly, using technology to reduce our production costs to improve productivity in future,’ he added.
