The Association of Industries of the Dominican Republic reported raw material costs as the primary factor reducing industrial competitiveness during the second quarter of 2026.
( DIARIO LIBRE / ARCHIVO )
The group reported that raw material costs had an incidence level of 21 percent between April and June 2026. Unfair competition ranked second for a second consecutive quarter with a 16 percent incidence, while the tax burden moved from tenth to third place at 14 percent.
Together, these three factors represented 51 percent of the main difficulties reported by industrial companies. According to the organisation, this total reflects combined pressures from production costs, market conditions, and fiscal obligations.
Secondary factors and survey results
A second group of difficulties included a low level of economic activity at 12 percent, competition from imported products at 8 percent, and fuel prices at 6 percent. In the first quarter of 2026, raw material costs had reduced industrial competitiveness by 20 percent.
The business organisation noted that part of the pressure on Dominican industry stems from external factors, specifically international prices for inputs and fuels. The organisation's Industrial Business Conditions Survey evaluates 15 factors every quarter to determine their impact on national industrial competitiveness, ordering them by the incidence reported by surveyed companies for April to June 2026.
