Following an expansion of nearly 1 ½ percent (year-on-year) in the first quarter of 2012, Barbados’ economy contracted by 2 percent in the second quarter of 2012. The Government of Barbados is on a privatization drive and has outlined plans to sell 30 percent stakes in the government-owned Grantley Adams International Airport, the Barbados National Oil Company, and the Barbados Port Authority.
The pickup in both global growth and commodity prices over the past couple of years explains a good part of the recent recovery of capital flows to EMEs. 5  4  See, for example, Wheatley and Garnham (2010) and Rajan (2014).