Samoa

Growth dampened by private sector job cuts

Coming off a period of fairly strong expansion in 2007, the economy grew by just 0.3% in 2008. Job cutbacks at Yazaki, which assembles automotive parts for export and is the biggest private-sector employer, contributed to the slowdown. The company reduced its workforce by more than a third in 2008 and cut the working week of the remaining employees. In the 12 months to September 2008, value added in manufacturing contracted by 5.7% and in construction by 7.3%. About 3% of formal jobs were lost in the first 9 months of 2008, many from construction and manufacturing. Read the full report.