Trinidad and Tobago: New businesses registered (number)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2020, Trinidad and Tobago's new businesses registered (number) fell 3.7% on 2019 (from 4,511 to 4,344).

Across the 13 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2019), the average change was +3.2% and a typical year strayed about 14.8% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations below 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 25.8% in 2013 and the biggest yearly fall was 22.4% in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2011 to 2020 there is no clear straight-line trend: a straight line explains 9% of the movement over 10 observed years, so the value is moving around more than it is heading anywhere.

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

Closest to Trinidad and Tobago in the 2020 ranking

• Nepal — 1st of 8: 25,859
• United Arab Emirates — 2nd of 8: 19,050
• Oman — 3rd of 8: 5,804
• Mali — 5th of 8: 2,741
• Lesotho — 6th of 8: 1,981
• St. Vincent and the Grenadines — 7th of 8: 323

What this measures

New businesses registered are the number of new limited liability corporations (or its equivalent) registered in the calendar year.

Limitations: The definition of entrepreneurship used is limited to the formal sector. Yet, it should be noted that the exclusion of the informal sector is based on the difficulties of quantifying the number of firms that compose it, rather than on its relevance for developing economies. Data collected from economies categorized as offshore financial centers by Eurostat are excluded from the analysis, because registered entities in these countries may not fit the objective of the Entrepreneurship Database aiming at measuring formally registered companies with actual economic activities.

All 15 values

New businesses registered (number) in nearby economies

• Antigua and Barbuda — 275 (2024)
• Argentina — 15,818 (2024)
• Barbados — 1,517 (2024)
• Belize — 3,710 (2024)
• Brazil — 979,211 (2024)
• Cayman Islands — 11,197 (2024)
• Chile — 123,159 (2023)
• Colombia — 82,208 (2024)
• Costa Rica — 22,333 (2024)
• Dominica — 171 (2024)
• Ecuador — 19,317 (2024)

More private sector & trade data for Trinidad and Tobago

• Merchandise trade (% of GDP) — 48.62% (2025)
• Merchandise imports (current US$) — US$5.8 billion (2025)
• Merchandise exports (current US$) — US$6.82 billion (2025)
• Merchandise imports from high-income economies (% of total merchandise imports) — 73.73% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies outside region (% of total merchandise imports) — 15.37% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in Latin America & the Caribbean (% of total merchandise imports) — 10.84% (2023)
• Merchandise imports from low- and middle-income economies in South Asia (% of total merchandise imports)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
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Questions people ask

What is Trinidad and Tobago's new businesses registered (number)?

4,344 in 2020, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2006?

It is up 26.98% from 3,421 in 2006 (1.72% a year on average, compounded). The highest value was 5,165 in 2015 and the lowest 2,693 in 2009.

Is the latest change in new businesses registered (number) unusual for Trinidad and Tobago?

In 2020, Trinidad and Tobago's new businesses registered (number) fell 3.7% on 2019 (from 4,511 to 4,344). Across the 13 yearly changes before that (2007 to 2019), the average change was +3.2% and a typical year strayed about 14.8% from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

Where does this data come from?

The World Bank's World Development Indicators, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator IC.BUS.NREG, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Entrepreneurship Database, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/programs/entrepreneurship 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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