Bahamas, The: Commercial service imports (current US$)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2024, Bahamas, The's commercial service imports (current US$) rose 11.5% on 2023 (from US$1.97 billion to US$2.2 billion).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +5.5% and a typical year strayed about 14.5% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 53.2% in 1977 and the biggest yearly fall was 28.9% in 2020. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is upward, about US$64.16 million a year. A straight line explains 42% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Bahamas, The had the 12th highest value of the 29 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Bahamas, The in the 2024 ranking

• Papua New Guinea — 9th of 29: US$2.4 billion
• Cameroon — 10th of 29: US$2.37 billion
• Mauritius — 11th of 29: US$2.28 billion
• Mali — 13th of 29: US$1.8 billion
• Zimbabwe — 14th of 29: US$1.59 billion
• Burkina Faso — 15th of 29: US$1.41 billion

What this measures

Commercial service imports are total service imports minus imports of government services not included elsewhere. Imports of services are services provided by non-residents to residents. This indicator is expressed in current prices, meaning no adjustment has been made to account for price changes over time. This indicator is expressed in United States dollars.

Limitations: Balance of payments statistics, the main source of information on international trade in services, have many weaknesses. Disaggregation of important components may be limited and varies considerably across countries. There are inconsistencies in the methods used to report items. And the recording of major flows as net items is common (for example, insurance transactions are often recorded as premiums less claims). These factors contribute to a downward bias in the value of the service trade reported in the balance of payments. Efforts are being made to improve the coverage, quality, and consistency of these data.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a gap-filled total.

All 49 values

Commercial service imports (current US$) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — US$614.45 million (2025)
• Argentina — US$29.74 billion (2025)
• Aruba — US$1.14 billion (2023)
• Barbados — US$670.92 million (2017)
• Belize — US$324.25 million (2025)
• Bolivia — US$2.36 billion (2025)
• Brazil — US$102.7 billion (2025)
• Chile — US$21.35 billion (2025)
• Colombia — US$19.87 billion (2025)
• Costa Rica — US$8.6 billion (2025)

More private sector & trade data for Bahamas, The

• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$5.52 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$711 million (2025)
• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 35.58% (2024)
• Merchandise exports to high-income economies (% of total merchandise exports) — 52.12% (2023)
• Merchandise exports by the reporting economy, residual (% of total merchandise exports) — 0% (2023)
• Merchandise exports by the reporting economy (current US$) — US$1.09 billion (2023)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 93.55% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Bahamas, The's commercial service imports (current US$)?

US$2.2 billion in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1976?

It is up 1,606% from US$129 million in 1976 (6.09% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was US$2.2 billion in 2024 and the lowest US$129 million in 1976.

How does Bahamas, The rank?

12th highest of 29 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in commercial service imports (current US$) unusual for Bahamas, The?

In 2024, Bahamas, The's commercial service imports (current US$) rose 11.5% on 2023 (from US$1.97 billion to US$2.2 billion). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1994 to 2023), the average change was +5.5% and a typical year strayed about 14.5% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator TM.VAL.SERV.CD.WT, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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