Select a region
The economies of the Channel Islands look to have enjoyed a rebound last year from the economic damage caused by covid, according to the latest forecast by the EY ITEM Club.
The winter report was commissioned by EY to analyse how the events from the past year have, and will continue to, impact on the Channel Islands economies.
The report explores the differing government responses to covid and how these impacted the economic outcomes for each respective island, the economic indicators which point towards recovery and growth, as well as the key issues facing our economies.
It concludes that while the barrier to growth presented by the pandemic fades, new obstacles are emerging in the form of surging commodity prices, high inflation and rising global tensions.
It adds that the islands’ economies will not escape these headwinds, notably the squeeze on households’ spending power from cost-of-living pressures.
The structure of the Channel Islands’ economies and the importance of tourism in sustaining employment and local spending does leave the islands, in some respects, more vulnerable to any resurgence in covid uncertainty, it says.
Martin Beck, Chief Economic Adviser for EY ITEM Club, said: “The worst of the pandemic looks to be in the past, which should boost confidence and the willingness of consumers and businesses to spend.
"Other forces, particularly strong household finances, are present in the Channel Islands and should go some way to compensate for the return of high inflation.
"Moreover, the important role played by banking in the islands’ economies means our expectation of rising interest rates should prove a net economic positive, resulting in a faster recovery in banking profits and GDP.
"That said, the economic consequences of rising commodity prices and heightened geopolitical uncertainty have cast a serious cloud over the outlook and something the Channel Islands’ economies won’t be immune from.”
Download the full report here
Pictured top: Martin Beck.
Comments
Comments on this story express the views of the commentator only, not Bailiwick Publishing. We are unable to guarantee the accuracy of any of those comments.