National

BNSI Report: New Numbers Show Country Still Buying More Than We Sell

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The Bahamas bought a little less from overseas this past quarter but sold a lot less.

Published

2 weeks ago

December 24, 2025

Kendeno Knowles

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The Bahamas bought a little less from overseas this past quarter but sold a lot less.

New trade numbers from the Bahamas National Statistical Institute show exports dropped sharply, keeping the country deeply in the red and helping explain why cost-of-living pressures continue to hit home.

According to new figures released by the Bahamas National Statistical Institute, The Bahamas continues to buy far more from the rest of the world than it sells.

The institute’s third quarter 2025 foreign trade report shows the country imported about one point $3B worth of goods between July and September – that’s a 3% decrease compared to the same period last year.

On the surface, that may sound like progress. But the same report shows exports, that is what The Bahamas sells to other countries, fell much faster.

Total exports dropped to about $128M, a19% decline year-over-year.

When you put those numbers together, the result is a trade deficit of more than $1.1B for the quarter.

In everyday terms, that means the country is still spending a lot more money abroad than it’s earning back.

The statistical institute’s report also breaks down what The Bahamas is buying.

The largest share of imports continues to be machinery and transport equipment, including vehicles and heavy equipment, totaling about $350M.

Food and live animals followed at $210M, highlighting the country’s continued reliance on imported food.

On the export side, the report shows a much smaller and narrower mix, with machinery, manufactured goods and food making up just over half of all exports.

The data also shows the United States remains the Bahamas’ largest trading partner, supplying more than one billion dollars in imports during the quarter, while buying back only a fraction of that in Bahamian goods.

For now, The Bahamas National Statistical Institute says the country remains deeply dependent on imports, a reality that continues to show up in the prices Bahamians pay every day.