Business
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Jamaica earns US$1.7 billion as tourism rebounds: CARICOM BUSINESS
Jamaica’s tourism continues to rebound strongly amid the coronavirus pandemic as is reflected in the US$1.7 billion in earnings since the reopening of the country’s borders in June 2020. Since that time, Jamaica has received 1,285,368 visitors — including 8,381 cruise passengers. According to Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, the forecast for 2021 is for a total of 1,578,743 visitors and…
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T&T removes taxes and import duties on electric vehicles: CARICOM BUSINESS
Effective January 1, 2022, Trinidad and Tobago will be removing all custom duties, motor vehicle tax and value-added tax on the importation of battery-powered electric vehicles with an age limit on imported used battery-powered electric vehicles of two years. This policy will be subject to review after 2 years have elapsed. In August, the government said plans were underway to…
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Jamaica raises policy interest rate to moderate inflation: CARICOM BUSINESS
The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) has raised its policy interest rate by 100 basis points to 1.50% as inflation breached the upper limit of the bank’s target range in August. However the action will “moderate” the economy’s growth potential. The policy interest rate has stood at a historic low of 0.5% since August 2019. Currently inflation is tracking at 6.1%.…
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Amidst rating downgrade, Bahamas set to grow by 8% in 2021: CARICOM BUSINESS
The US-based rating agency Moody’s downgraded the sovereign creditworthiness of The Bahamas slashed the country’s long-term issuer and senior unsecured ratings to ‘Ba3’ from ‘Ba2, a day after the general election. Moody’s, in maintaining a “negative outlook” on The Bahamas, justified the downgrade by saying “the downgrade to Ba3 reflects the significant erosion of The Bahamas’ economic and fiscal strength”…
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Keynote address by Secretary-General Dr Carla Barnett at the Opening Session of the State of the Sector Conference of the Barbados Small Business Association
Honourable Kerrie Symonds, Minister of Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship of Barbados; Mr. Neil Corbin, President of the Barbados Small Business Association; Senator Dr. Lynette Holder, Chief Executive Officer of the Barbados Small Business Association; Dr. Deodat Maharaj, Executive Director of Caribbean Export; Presenters, Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen. Greetings! I am really delighted to have the opportunity to speak with…
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Jamaica’s exports record growth of 24.6%: CARICOM BUSINESS
Jamaica’s total spending on Imports for January – May 2021 amounted to US$2,249.3 million, an increase of 12.0% relative to the same period in 2020. This increase was mainly attributable to higher imports of Fuels and Lubricants (42.7%) and Raw Materials / Intermediate Goods (13.8%). Total exports for the review period were valued at US$655.1 million, 24.6% above the US$525.7…
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Caribbean expected to grow 4.1% in 2021, ECLAC says: CARICOM BUSINESS
A new “Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean” report released by ECLAC raised its growth forecast for the Region from 5.2% in July to 5.9%. Despite the encouraging improvement, these figures remain below par to bounce back from 2019’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) with the Caribbean posited to grow by 4.1%. The growth in 2021, according to the…
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Barbados: Arrivals rising in tourism sector – CARICOM BUSINESS
Tourism interests in Barbados are now viewing the upcoming 2021/22 winter tourism season optimistically based on the latest statistics from the Barbados Tourism Marketing Inc. (BTMI). During July 2021, some 10,819 visitors travelled to Barbados, a significant increase of 6,745 visitors compared to the corresponding period of July 2020. The United States (US) copped 43.3 % market share, while the…
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Guyana rolls back freight charges to pre-pandemic levels: CARICOM BUSINESS
Effective August 1, 2021, Guyana by statute reduced freight charges to pre-pandemic levels (March 31, 2020) in the calculation of customs duties, excise taxes, and input VAT on goods imported. This facility however expires on January 31, 2022. This was occasioned by marked increase in shipping costs from some countries, moving from an average of US$2,500 to as much as…
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Grenada fiscal revenues exceed target by 10.6%: CARICOM BUSINESS
The Fiscal Reports for the months of April, May and June have shown that the Government of Grenada earned more than the targeted revenue as projected in the 2021 Estimate of Revenue. For the 3-month period total revenue collections equalled EC$175.9 million, $18.6 million above target or $32.7 million more than revenues collected for the comparable 3-month period in 2020.…
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