Insurance and financial services (% of commercial service imports) in Sao Tome and Principe
Sao Tome and Principe: Insurance and financial services (% of commercial service imports) was 1.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Insurance and financial services in Sao Tome and Principe, 1974–2025
Source: Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of commercial service imports.
Analysis
Sao Tome and Principe recorded 1.8% for insurance and financial services in 2025.
The figure is down 76.2% on the previous year and down 71.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, insurance and financial services in Sao Tome and Principe peaked at 12.0% in 1981 and was at its lowest, 1.3%, in 2022.
That places Sao Tome and Principe 180th out of 197 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 46 years of available data.
Insurance and financial services (% of commercial service imports) in Sao Tome and Principe, year by year
| Year | % of commercial service imports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 5.5% | — |
| 1975 | 6.7% | +21.3% |
| 1976 | 7.7% | +15.0% |
| 1977 | 6.4% | -16.7% |
| 1978 | 6.9% | +7.7% |
| 1979 | 5.0% | -28.2% |
| 1980 | 6.1% | +21.6% |
| 1981 | 12.0% | +98.1% |
| 1982 | 11.6% | -3.0% |
| 1983 | 9.2% | -20.6% |
| 1984 | 8.2% | -10.8% |
| 1985 | 5.7% | -30.6% |
| 1986 | 5.3% | -7.1% |
| 1987 | 4.3% | -19.7% |
| 1988 | 4.3% | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 3.7% | -15.2% |
| 1990 | 3.8% | +4.9% |
| 1997 | 10.5% | +173.3% |
| 1998 | 11.0% | +4.8% |
| 1999 | 9.7% | -12.0% |
| 2000 | 9.6% | -1.0% |
| 2001 | 9.5% | -0.9% |
| 2002 | 9.5% | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 9.2% | -3.1% |
| 2004 | 9.1% | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 6.9% | -24.4% |
| 2006 | 7.5% | +8.2% |
| 2007 | 7.0% | -6.2% |
| 2008 | 7.4% | +5.2% |
| 2009 | 7.3% | -0.6% |
| 2010 | 6.9% | -5.9% |
| 2011 | 7.5% | +8.5% |
| 2012 | 3.8% | -49.9% |
| 2013 | 1.8% | -51.6% |
| 2014 | 1.4% | -24.3% |
| 2015 | 6.3% | +360.9% |
| 2016 | 1.5% | -75.6% |
| 2017 | 1.9% | +20.1% |
| 2018 | 2.7% | +45.1% |
| 2019 | 3.5% | +28.4% |
| 2020 | 4.9% | +40.8% |
| 2021 | 4.4% | -9.9% |
| 2022 | 1.3% | -70.7% |
| 2023 | 2.6% | +99.5% |
| 2024 | 7.5% | +191.4% |
| 2025 | 1.8% | -76.2% |
Sao Tome and Principe compared with similar countries
- Sao Tome and Principe's 1.8% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 6.0%, 30% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Sao Tome and Principe's 1.8% is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 4.9%, 36% of the median. (45 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Insurance and financial services (% of commercial service imports) in Sao Tome and Principe changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | +360.9% | 1.4% | 6.3% |
| 2024 | +191.4% | 2.6% | 7.5% |
| 1997 | +173.3% | 3.8% | 10.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 6.4% | 5.0% | 7.7% | 6 |
| 1980s | 7.0% | 3.7% | 12.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 8.8% | 3.8% | 11.0% | 4 |
| 2000s | 8.3% | 6.9% | 9.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.7% | 1.4% | 7.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.7% | 1.3% | 7.5% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Sao Tome and Principe
More private sector data for Sao Tome and Principe
- Merchandise trade 22.5% (2025)
- Food imports 31.8% (2023)
- Manufactures imports 37.1% (2023)
- Merchandise imports 183.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 231.13 million current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 98.2% (2023)
- Manufactures exports 1.5% (2023)
- Merchandise exports 38.00 million current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 105.01 million current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 158.17 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is insurance and financial services in Sao Tome and Principe?
- Insurance and financial services in Sao Tome and Principe was 1.8% in 2025, according to Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest insurance and financial services recorded in Sao Tome and Principe?
- The highest recorded value was 12.0% in 1981.
- What is the lowest insurance and financial services recorded in Sao Tome and Principe?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.3% in 2022.
- How does Sao Tome and Principe rank for insurance and financial services?
- Sao Tome and Principe ranks 180th out of 197 countries with data for 2025.
- Is insurance and financial services rising or falling in Sao Tome and Principe?
- Over the last ten years it is down 71.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Sao Tome and Principe data come from?
- The figures come from Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Insurance and financial services (% of commercial service imports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Financial services covers services related to financial intermediation, financial risk management, liquidity transformation or auxiliary financial activities. It also includes insurance and pension scheme services which are services related to providing life insurance and annuities, non-life insurance, reinsurance, pensions, standardised guarantees and auxiliary services to insurance, pension schemes, and standardised guarantee schemes. This indicator is expressed as a percentage of service imports which are commercial services provided by non-residents to residents.