National accounts

National accounting measures estimate the size and performance of Jersey’s economy, using an internationally agreed framework.

In Jersey, two key economic measures are typically presented:

• Gross Domestic Product (GDP): the total market value of all goods and services produced in Jersey
• Gross Value Added (GVA): the value of economic activity in Jersey which can be broken down by sector

GDP

In 2023, GDP for Jersey:

• increased by 7.3% in real terms compared to the previous year
• was £6,575 million, up by around £450 million from 2022

Over the previous 10 years (2012 to 2022), real term GDP increased, on average, by 1.6% annually. In 2023, GDP was 14.8% higher than in 2019 (before the Covid-19 pandemic) and exceeded the long-term average following the pandemic’s impact in 2020 and 2021.

GDP per capita

GDP per head of population, or GDP per capita, is a useful measure that shows the average economic output per person in a jurisdiction. It helps to account for changes in population size, making it easier to compare economic performance. By focusing on this figure, it is easier to assess the relative standard of living, productivity, and wealth of the population, rather than just the overall economic output.

In 2023, GDP per head of population:

• increased by 7.0% in real terms
• increased by about £4,100 per head (from £59,400 in 2022 to £63,500 in 2023)

Over the previous 10 years (2012 to 2022) real term GDP per head of population has increased, on average, by 1.2% annually. The latest increase is above that longer term average.

GVA

Gross Value Added (GVA) enables the breakdown of the economy by different industry sectors.

The financial services sector represents the largest component of total GVA in Jersey, accounting for over two-fifths of total GVA in 2023. The next largest individual sectors were real estate activities (11.7%) and public administration (8.8%). The non-finance private sectors make up the remaining components of total GVA. These are further detailed below.

The table below shows the GVA for each sector of the economy in 2023 together with the annual real term change. You can expand the table further to display the more detailed division information.

The increase in overall GDP was driven by the financial and insurance activities sector, in particular as a result of increased net interest income in the monetary intermediation (banking) sub-sector.

Several other sectors also recorded real-term increases in GVA, including human health and social work activities (up 16.3%), driven by increased employment expenditure in the sector, and transport and storage (within the “other sectors” category and up 12.3%) which continued its recovery following the Covid-19 pandemic.

In comparison, whilst overall real-term GVA increased, several sectors recorded real-term decreases in GVA; notably agriculture, forestry and fishing (down 9.3%) and arts, entertainment and recreation (down 10.9%). The largest decrease was recorded in the real estate activities sector (down 11.5%).

Most sectors are self-explanatory, but please note the following:

• Financial and insurance activities includes banking, trust and company administration, and other financial services, but excludes legal and accounting services. These services are classified under ‘Professional, scientific and technical activities’ for easier international comparison.
• Real estate activities includes both rental income earned by private households and owner-occupied imputed rental costs (OOIR). OOIR is a theoretical concept included in national accounts that is essentially an estimate of the rental costs that homeowners would pay themselves to rent their own property. This payment does not actually occur but is required in order to make meaningful comparisons between countries in which owner-occupation is high (such as the UK) and countries where owner-occupier rates are lower, such as Germany. OOIR accounts for 68% of GVA in this sector.
• Public administration includes the Government of Jersey, non-ministerial departments, and the 12 parishes, but excludes trading entities like the Ports of Jersey and Jersey Car Parks, which fall under transport and storage.
• Professional, scientific and technical activities includes legal and accounting services.
• Other sectors includes all other sectors of the economy, such as agriculture, transport and storage and manufacturing.

Data sources and methods

The Annual Business Survey is the main data source for Jersey’s national accounts.

For details on the methodology, see the notes section in the latest report.

Find data and past reports

Find past reports on our release calendar. 

You can find the national accounts data on the open data website.