Current account balance in Barbados

Barbados: Current account balance was -5.1% in 2017. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2017)
-5.1%
Change on year
up 36.4%
World rank
146th
of 200 countries
All-time high
7.5%
in 1992
All-time low
-28.0%
in 1969
Years of data
51
1967–2017

Current account balance in Barbados, 1967–2017

-30-20-10010196719922017

Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of GDP.

Analysis

Barbados recorded -5.1% for current account balance in 2017.

That represents a change of up 36.4% on the previous year and up 31.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, current account balance in Barbados peaked at 7.5% in 1992 and was at its lowest, -28.0%, in 1969.

That places Barbados 146th out of 200 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Current account balance in Barbados, year by year

Annual values for Current account balance (% of GDP) in Barbados, 1967 to 2017.
Year % of GDP Change
1967 -14.5%
1968 -21.0% +44.3%
1969 -28.0% +33.4%
1970 -27.8% -0.7%
1971 -22.7% -18.2%
1972 -21.7% -4.3%
1973 -19.4% -11.0%
1974 -18.5% -4.5%
1975 -11.5% -37.9%
1976 -16.0% +39.6%
1977 -9.6% -40.2%
1978 -4.3% -55.4%
1979 -6.3% +46.9%
1980 -6.0% -4.0%
1981 -11.9% +96.5%
1982 -6.9% -42.2%
1983 -7.1% +3.5%
1984 -2.4% -65.7%
1985 -0.4% -84.6%
1986 2.6% -796.8%
1987 -0.4% -117.2%
1988 3.1% -782.7%
1989 1.4% -52.8%
1990 -0.4% -124.5%
1991 -1.0% +172.1%
1992 7.5% -874.8%
1993 4.1% -44.8%
1994 6.2% +51.2%
1995 0.0% -99.3%
1996 6.0% +14008.4%
1997 -3.2% -153.8%
1998 -3.8% +17.5%
1999 -4.5% +18.9%
2000 -3.3% -25.5%
2001 -3.6% +9.0%
2002 -4.7% +28.0%
2003 -5.9% +25.8%
2004 -12.7% +116.5%
2005 -13.0% +2.2%
2006 -10.5% -19.2%
2007 -7.4% -29.2%
2008 -9.0% +21.4%
2009 -8.5% -5.4%
2010 -5.0% -41.2%
2011 -3.1% -37.8%
2012 -8.2% +161.9%
2013 -4.5% -45.4%
2014 -11.4% +154.6%
2015 -1.7% -84.7%
2016 -8.0% +359.9%
2017 -5.1% -36.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s -21.2% -28.0% -14.5% 3
1970s -15.8% -27.8% -4.3% 10
1980s -2.8% -11.9% 3.1% 10
1990s 1.1% -4.5% 7.5% 10
2000s -7.9% -13.0% -3.3% 10
2010s -5.9% -11.4% -1.7% 8

Countries ranked near Barbados

  1. 143 Zambia -4.4% compare
  2. 144 Côte d'Ivoire -4.5% compare
  3. 145 Serbia -4.9% compare
  4. 147 Jordan -5.3% compare
  5. 148 Bulgaria -5.8% compare
  6. 149 Niger -6.1% compare

See the full ranking of 200 places →

More economy & growth data for Barbados

All data for Barbados →

Frequently asked questions

What is current account balance in Barbados?
Current account balance in Barbados was -5.1% in 2017, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
What is the highest current account balance recorded in Barbados?
The highest recorded value was 7.5% in 1992.
What is the lowest current account balance recorded in Barbados?
The lowest recorded value was -28.0% in 1969.
How does Barbados rank for current account balance?
Barbados ranks 146th out of 200 countries with data for 2017.
Is current account balance rising or falling in Barbados?
Over the last ten years it is up 31.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Barbados data come from?
The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Current account balance (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Current account balance in Barbados. Statizoid, drawing on Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://economy.statizoid.com/stat/current-account-balance-percent-of-gdp/barbados/

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About this data

Indicator
Current account balance (% of GDP)
Unit
% of GDP
Source
Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
200 places, 7,731 data points, 1960–2025
Last refreshed

Balance of current transactions (transactions in goods and services, earned income and transfer income) between residents and non-residents. The term current account balance is used in the external accounts and is expressed from the perspective of resident units. The term current external balance is used in the national accounts and is expressed from the perspective of the non-resident units, and therefore with the opposite sign. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is the total income earned through the production of goods and services in an economic territory during an accounting period.