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▪ Sagicor Financial Corporation Limited’s proposed bond issue initial rating assigned at CariAA

▪ Dominica Agriculture, Industrial and Development Bank’s rating reaffirmed at CariBB-

▪ Beacon Insurance Company Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariA-

▪ The Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica rating reaffirmed at CariBB

▪ The Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago rating reaffirmed at CariAA+

▪ Eastern Caribbean Home Mortgage Bank’s rating reaffirmed at CariBBB+

▪ Sagicor Group Jamaica Limited’s initial rating assigned at CariA

▪ NIF Holding Company Limited’s TT$4 billion issue rating reaffirmed CariAA

▪ Goddard Enterprises Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariAA-

▪ NCB Global Finance Limited’s initial rating assigned at CariA

▪ RHAND Credit Union Co-operative Society Limited’s rating reaffirmed at CariBBB-

▪ Development Bank of Jamaica Limited’s rating upgraded to CariA- ▪ Bourse Securities Limited rating reaffirmed at CariA- ▪ PLIPDECO’s rating reaffirmed at CariA+

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IFRS 17 Insurance Contracts 8th & 9th October 2019 Trinidad

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REGIONAL

Trinidad and Tobago

CAL official airline for World Interhash 2020

Caribbean Airlines (CAL) is the official airline for the World Interhash 2020

which will take place in Trinidad and Tobago from April 23-26, 2020.

JMMB leads trading

Overall stock market yesterday activity resulted from trading in 16

securities of which three advanced, three declined and ten traded firm.

Huawei looking to boost T&T's ICT

In the last four years Chinese tech firm, Huawei, has invested $272 million

(US$40 million) in Trinidad and Tobago.

Digicel raises prices for some of its products

Digicel has raised its prices on some of its offerings effective August 15,

2019. In a response to questions by Guardian Media, the company said:

“...due to higher programming costs, it became necessary to adjust the

prices on some of the packages, which only directly affects around five

per cent of our customer base.”

Jamaica

EFresh posts loss after meat business consolidation

Higher operating expenses pushed food distributor Everything Fresh

Limited into the red in the June quarter, as the importer and distributor

integrated the recently acquired Meat Experts into its operation.

FosRich reports flat half-year after tax audit, new plant

Electrical company FosRich expects to bounce back from a flat half-year,

saying its performance to date resulted from one-off events, including an

unexpected tax bill.

Celebration Brands commissions Logic One warehouse

Celebration Brands Limited, which is jointly operated by Red Stripe

Jamaica and partner Pepsi-Cola Jamaica, opened a new warehouse on

Spanish Town Road in Kingston on Tuesday that it has branded as Logic

One.

Jamaica Continued

First Rock makes first foreign acquisitions - Plans to list on JSE by year end

Ryan Reid, president and CEO of First Rock Capital, is set to travel to Costa

Rica this week to oversee a residential transaction in that country valued

at US$3 million.

Second-quarter profit falls at Jetcon; reverses years of solid growth

Jetcon Corporation Limited (Jetcon) managing director Andrew Jackson

is informing that for the second quarter ended June 2019, the company's

net profit of $8.67 million has reversed three years of solid growth for the

company. Jetcon recorded a net profit of $34.71 million in the prior year.

Profit falls 55% at Kingston Properties

Kingston Properties Limited (KPREIT) reported on Thursday last (August 15)

an unaudited after-tax surplus of $28.6 million, for the six months ended

June 30, 2019, despite a 55 per cent decrease due to unrealised foreign

exchange losses incurred on net assets when compared to gains in the

prior year. The company recorded $6 million in unrealized foreign

exchange losses and a $1.8 million tax charge.

General Accident reports after-tax profit of $135.28 million for first six

months of 2019

General Accident Insurance Company Jamaica Limited (General

Accident), on Friday (August 16) reported an after-tax profit of $135.28

million for the six months ended June 30, 2019. This represents a 42 per

cent increase compared to the previous corresponding period.

GWest venturing into telemedicine with Digicel

Western Jamaica medical outfit, GWest Corporation is teaming up with

Digicel to venture into telemedicine in Jamaica.

Guyana

Service and construction sector grow by 4.6% -Report finds this is the

highest in eight years

Based on the findings of the Mid-Year Report 2019, which was presented

by the Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, the service sector is estimated

to have grown by 4.6 percent in the first half of 2019.

The Bahamas

Bahamian Brewery Expands in Nassau

The Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company has moved to an

expanded three-acre warehouse and office complex in Nassau’s Airport

Industrial Park to serve its continued growth.

'No Abandonment' Of Joining The WTO

The government was yesterday said to have told private sector executives

it has “not abandoned the policy of acceding” to full membership in the

World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Sky Employees 'Must Do What They Have to Do'

Sky Bahamas’ principal yesterday said the airline’s staff “have to do what

they have to do”, with its near-two month grounding pushing him towards

legal action against industry regulator.

Belize

LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS PROJECT BILL WILL CREATE BELIZE NATIONAL

GAS COMPANY

An important piece of legislation that made its way through the House of

Representatives today was the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Project Bill, which

will give legal status to the Belize National Gas Company that government

is banking on to bring about a reduction in the price consumers pay for

LPG (butane gas).

Dominica

PricewaterhouseCoopers praises Dominica for use of CBI funds

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), one of the world’s largest multinational

professional services firms, has praised Dominica for the good use of the

funds generated from the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme.

The Dominican Republic

Dominican economy rebounds in 2018, continues in 2019: IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday said Dominican

Republic’s economy grew a record 7% in 2018, with a momentum that

carried over to the first part of 2019.

Venezuela

Venezuela's PDVSA debt to Russia's Rosneft down to $1.1 billion in second

quarter

Venezuelan state-owned oil company PDVSA had lowered its outstanding

debt to Rosneft to $1.1 billion by the end of the second quarter, from $1.8

billion as of the end of the first quarter, Rosneft said on Wednesday.

Humanitarian Assistance to be Scaled-up for Millions of Venezuelans in

Need

The United Nations humanitarian wing launched a new Response Plan

(HRP) on Wednesday, that aims to help around 2.6 million people in

Venezuela through to the end of the year, almost half of whom are youth.

INTERNATIONAL

United States

Futures gain on upbeat Target, Lowe's earnings; Fed minutes eyed

U.S. stock index futures rose on Wednesday as upbeat earnings reports

from retailers Lowe’s and Target reflected robust consumer demand,

helping ease some concerns around slowing economic growth.

Target surges on same-day service boost

Target Corp raised its annual profit forecast on Wednesday after reporting

better-than-expected quarterly results as higher investments to remodel

stores and beef up digital business drew in more shoppers, sending shares

up 17%.

Apple plans to tap China's BOE Technology for advanced iPhone screens

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is in the final stages of certifying advanced screens

from Chinese display maker BOE Technology Group Co Ltd (000725.SZ) for

its iPhones, as it attempts to reduce reliance on Samsung Electronics, the

Nikkei reported on Wednesday.

Goldman moves to take majority control of China joint venture

Goldman Sachs has applied for majority control of its Chinese joint

venture, the bank confirmed on Wednesday, the latest international bank

to do so ahead of Chinese plans to eventually allow foreigners full control.

United Kingdom

UK expenditure strains budget as Johnson eyes more spending

Higher government spending ate into Britain’s seasonal budget surplus in

July, underlining the budget constraints facing Prime Minister Boris

Johnson, who has promised to boost outlays as he prepares the country

for Brexit.

UK fast-tracks firms for customs roll as it readies for Brexit

Britain will automatically enroll nearly 90,000 companies in a customs

system in order to reduce the risk of Brexit disruption, the government said,

its latest attempt to show it can leave the European Union without a deal

if necessary.

Europe

European stocks recover before Fed minutes, Jackson Hole gathering

European stocks rallied on Wednesday as hopes for more monetary and

fiscal stimulus helped assuage worries about global recession, political

turmoil in Italy and endless trade wars.

Fiat-Renault deal hints lift European shares

Car industry shares drove a rebound in European stock markets on

Wednesday, helped by an Italian newspaper report suggesting merger

talks between Fiat Chrysler and Renault have gained some traction in

recent weeks.

Spain trade deficit rises 0.9% to June year-on-year

Spain’s trade deficit rose 0.9% in the first six months of the year compared

to the same period a year earlier to 14.71 billion euros ($16.32 billion), the

Industry Ministry said on Wednesday.

China

China approves $18.7 billion of urban railway projects in southwestern city

China’s state planner said on Wednesday that it has approved eight

urban railway projects worth a total of 131.83 billion yuan ($18.67 billion) in

the southwestern city of Chengdu.

China Continued

Bankers hawk hedging as trade war hits China's yuan

In a Shanghai room packed with small businesses ranging from furniture

makers to garment exporters, Zhu Yuan, a currency expert at Bank of

Communications, explains why Chinese companies need to build their

defenses against currency volatility.

Global

Oil up over 1%, buoyed by U.S. stock drawdown

Crude oil futures rose more than 1% on Wednesday after industry data

showed a larger than expected drop in U.S. crude inventories, but gains

were capped by lingering worries about a possible global recession.

Oil up over 1%, buoyed by U.S. stock drawdown Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Crude oil futures rose more than 1% on Wednesday after industry data

showed a larger than expected drop in U.S. crude inventories, but gains

were capped by lingering worries about a possible global recession.

Brent crude LCOc1 had gained 90 cents, or 1.5%, to $60.93 a barrel by

1225 GMT, while U.S. crude CLc1 was up 58 cents, or 1.03%, at $56.71 a

barrel.

U.S. crude oil stocks fell by 3.5 million barrels in the week to Aug. 16, data

from industry group the American Petroleum Institute (API) showed on

Tuesday. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected a fall of 1.9 million

barrels.

“Crude prices should see support from a bullish API stockpile report that

could signal the largest Cushing draw since February 2018, if the EIA

validates it,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at OANDA in New

York, referring to the draw on inventories at Cushing, Oklahoma, the

delivery point for U.S. crude futures.

Inventory numbers from the government’s Energy Information

Administration (EIA) are due at 10:30 a.m. EDT (1430 GMT) and will be

more closely watched than usual given the nearing of the end of peak

U.S. driving season, analysts said.

Tensions in the Middle East remained in the spotlight as U.S. Secretary of

State Mike Pompeo said on Tuesday the United States would take every

action it can to prevent an Iranian tanker in the Mediterranean from

delivering oil to Syria in contravention of U.S. sanctions.

STRONG DEMAND

Oil prices were also supported by data showing lower exports in June from

Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter.

Saudi Arabia plans to keep its crude exports below 7 million barrels per

day (bpd) in August and September despite strong demand from

customers to bring the market back to balance, a Saudi oil official told

Reuters earlier this month.

But uncertainty over the global economic outlook amid the U.S.-China

trade war capped gains in the oil markets.

“Crude oil remains stuck, with the relief rally in recent days not removing

the fear that recession risks could still send the market lower again,” said

Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.

Traders are also awaiting this week’s annual U.S. central bank seminar in

Jackson Hole, where comments from Federal Reserve Chief Jerome

Powell will be in focus.

“Market players continued to fret over recession fears and sluggish oil

demand forecasts,” said Stephen Brennock of oil broker PVM.

“A reprieve, however, may be on the cards tomorrow ... expectations are

running high that hints of impending monetary stimulus will be plentiful”.

<< Back to news headlines >>

European stocks recover before Fed minutes, Jackson Hole gathering Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

European stocks rallied on Wednesday as hopes for more monetary and

fiscal stimulus helped assuage worries about global recession, political

turmoil in Italy and endless trade wars.

Traders are waiting for the Federal Reserve’s annual Jackson Hole

symposium later this week and a Group of Seven summit this weekend for

clues on what steps policymakers will take to boost economic growth.

Much depends on what the Fed does with U.S. interest rates, making

markets hyper-sensitive to the minutes - due later on Wednesday - of its

last meeting.

“People are looking ahead to Jackson Hole later this week and the

message that Jerome Powell may or may not give us on the direction of

monetary policy. That is the highlight of the week and we are waiting with

bated breath,” said Andrew Milligan, head of global strategy at

Aberdeen Standard Investments.

Futures are fully priced for a quarter-point cut in rates next month and cuts

of more than 100 basis points by the end of next year.

Morgan Stanley economist Ellen Zentner advised clients to watch for the

use of the word “somewhat” when Powell describes future policy.

“Acknowledgment that downside risks have increased with no

characterization of ‘somewhat’ could be taken as confirmation that it is

likely the Fed makes a larger cut in September,” Zentner wrote in a note.

With so much riding on the Fed, investors were cautious and volumes

subdued, but gains extended later in the session. The Euro STOXX 600 was

up 1.1% to its highest since early August, with Italy outperforming after a

rout yesterday following the resignation of Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe

Conte.

Shares in Milan-listed Fiat Chrysler climbed 4.0% after Italian media

reported that talks between Fiat and Renault never stopped. That put the

STOXX 600 Autos Index on track for its best day in a month. France’s CAC

40 Index was set for its best day since Aug. 8.GEA Group, a German food-

processing-machinery company, and outsourcing group Capita gained

more than 5% after Goldman Sachs upgraded its rating on the stocks. In

the U.S., stock index futures pointed to a stronger opening, with Dow e-

minis up 0.65% and S&P 500 e-minis 0.73% higher.

Upbeat earnings reports from retailers Lowe’s Cos Inc and Target Corp

reflected robust consumer demand, helping ease some concern about

slowing economic growth.

President Donald Trump showed no signs of backing down in his tussle with

China, declaring on Tuesday a confrontation was necessary even if it hurt

the U.S. economy in the short term.

Shortly afterward, the U.S. government approved an $8 billion sale of

Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan, a move sure to draw Beijing’s

ire and further dim prospects for a trade deal.

Political turmoil in Italy, Britain and Hong Kong has also heightened

uncertainties. Italian bond yields steadied after falling on Tuesday, as

Italian President Sergio Mattarella began two days of talks that will lead

either to formation of the country’s 67th government since World War Two

or to early elections.

Germany sold 30-year bonds with a negative yield for the first time at an

auction on Wednesday, a milestone for a fixed-income market where the

entire curve now yields less than zero..

MORE STIMULUS

Alarm bells started ringing last week when yields on U.S. 10-year notes fell

below two-year yields for the first time since 2007, an inversion that has

preceded previous recessions. That was enough to prompt Trump’s

administration to look for ways to stimulate the U.S. economy. In addition,

the central banks of the euro zone, Australia and China are all expected

to further loosen monetary policy this year. Germany is considering fiscal

stimulus.

Those prospects have driven yields lower. Benchmark U.S.10-year Treasury

yields stood at 1.57% on Wednesday, down from a high of 1.625% on

Monday.

Currency markets were mostly subdued. The euro weakened to $1.1097 .

The dollar, measured against a basket of currencies, rose 0.1% to 98.228 .

Sterling was last down 0.4% at $1.2126 and 0.4% lower versus the euro at

91.52 pence.

In commodities markets, U.S. crude rose 72 cents to$56.90 per barrel. Brent

added 1.7% to $61.07.

Spot gold was weaker at $1,498.15 an ounce.


Fiat-Renault deal hints lift European shares Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Car industry shares drove a rebound in European stock markets on

Wednesday, helped by an Italian newspaper report suggesting merger

talks between Fiat Chrysler and Renault have gained some traction in

recent weeks.

Renault SA (RENA.PA) rose about 3% and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

(FCHA.MI) added 2% after Italian newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore suggested the

previously-aborted deal could be back on the table, while giving no

details of its sources.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose 0.7% at 0818 GMT, with the autos

index .SXAP up 1.6%.

Italy's FTSE MIB .FTMIB moved 1.4% higher, bouncing back from a drop in

the previous session amid a deepening Italian political crisis.

Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte resigned on Tuesday, potentially

paving the way for a new coalition government but sentiment was

soothed after Italy’s League leader Matteo Salvini said he was ready to

keep the coalition government alive to approve a 2020 budget.

“What happened in Italy wasn’t really unexpected and we are seeing a

correction after the negative situation yesterday,” said Rabobank

quantitative analyst Bas Van Geffen.

“The fact that Italy is looking into budget negotiations so that they can

submit the budget on time is partly helping sentiment.”

U.S. President Donald Trump also said overnight that his administration was

considering potential tax cuts, and sought to play down market worries

that the world’s top economy could be heading for a recession.

“The main affect of Trump cutting taxes will be on U.S. markets, but if the

U.S. does better, it is good for an export oriented country like the

Netherlands and Germany and therefore for the rest of the Eurozone as

well,” Van Geffen said.

Signs that governments and central banks are ready to step in with

additional measure to boost cooling global growth have helped stock

markets survive a volatile few months, but they are still on course to end

August lower.

The STOXX is down 3% for the month, driven chiefly by fears that the

slowing economic effects of a drawn-out U.S.-China trade war and the

fallout of Britain’s exit from the European Union are slowly tipping some

major economies into recession.

The U.S. Federal Reserve’s Jackson Hole Symposium starting on Thursday

will be closely watched for comment by central bankers. The Fed is also

due to release minutes from its last policy meeting later on Wednesday.

Among individual stocks, Capita Plc (CPI.L) rose 3.9% to the top of the

STOXX 600 index, after brokerage Goldman Sachs upgraded its shares to

“buy”.

Pandora A/S gained 13.4%, extending Tuesday’s gains, as Chief Financial

Officer Anders Boyer reported purchase of 24,400 shares of the company.


Spain trade deficit rises 0.9% to June year-on-year Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Spain’s trade deficit rose 0.9% in the first six months of the year compared

to the same period a year earlier to 14.71 billion euros ($16.32 billion), the

Industry Ministry said on Wednesday.

In the first six months, imports increased by 1.6% to 162.12 billion euros,

while exports rose 1.7% year on year to 147.41 billion euros, the data

showed.

In June, the deficit fell 37.4% from a year earlier to 1.53 billion euros as

exports rose 0.9% year on year to 24.94 billion euros and imports

decreased 2.6% to 26.47 billion euros year on year, official data showed.


Futures gain on upbeat Target, Lowe's earnings; Fed minutes eyed Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

U.S. stock index futures rose on Wednesday as upbeat earnings reports

from retailers Lowe’s and Target reflected robust consumer demand,

helping ease some concerns around slowing economic growth.

Shares of home improvement chain Lowe’s Cos Inc (LOW.N) rose 10.5% in

premarket trading as it joined bigger rival Home Depot (HD.N) in beating

profit estimates.

Big-box retailer Target Corp TGT8.N surged 13.4% after it beat quarterly

same-store sales and profit estimates.

The centerpiece for the day will be the release of the minutes from the

Federal Reserve’s July meeting, when it cut interest rates for the first time in

more than a decade.

U.S.-China trade tensions have taken a turn for the worse since the Fed’s

move, adding to economic risks and putting in focus Chair Jerome

Powell’s speech at Jackson Hole on Friday. His remarks will be scrutinized

for clues on what more policymakers are planning to boost growth.

The three main Wall Street indexes closed lower on Tuesday following a

three-day rebound, which was driven by signs that major economies were

considering stimulus to boost growth.

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump said his administration was looking at

cuts to payroll and capital gains taxes, a week after the U.S. yield curve

inverted, which is widely viewed as a harbinger of a recession.

“Fundamentally you see concerns about the slowdown, but you have

global central banks aiming to unleash stimulus and that is helping

sentiment,” said Rabobank analyst Bas Van Geffen.

At 6:58 a.m. ET, Dow e-minis 1YMcv1 were up 169 points, or 0.65%. S&P 500

e-minis EScv1 were up 21.25 points, or 0.73% and Nasdaq 100 e-minis

NQcv1 were up 65.25 points, or 0.85%.

Interest-rate sensitive bank stocks were up after a slide in the previous

session. Bank of America Corp (BAC.N), Citigroup Inc (C.N), JPMorgan

Chase & Co (JPM.N), Goldman Sachs (GS.N) and Morgan Stanley (MS.N)

gained between 0.6% and 1.2%.

Data from National Association of Realtors at 10:00 a.m. ET is expected to

show existing home sales rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.39

million units in July, from 5.27 million units a month earlier.


Target surges on same-day service boost Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Target Corp raised its annual profit forecast on Wednesday after reporting

better-than-expected quarterly results as higher investments to remodel

stores and beef up digital business drew in more shoppers, sending shares

up 17%.

The retailer has been adding muscle to its same-day services with

initiatives like Shipt, in-store pickup and Drive-up as customers increasingly

get used to faster deliveries from rivals Amazon.com Inc and Walmart Inc.

These services allow shoppers to pull into a store and pick-up their orders

within minutes of placing them through the mobile app or website. The

company said one out of five customers, who used its same-day service in

the second quarter, were new.

Faster services also drove more than three-fourths of the 34% increase in

comparable digital sales. The robust online sales accounted for more than

half of the 3.4% growth in same-store sales.

Analysts on average were expecting same-store sales to grow 3%,

according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

“Q2 could not have gone better for Target,” Moody’s vice president

Charlie O’Shea said.

Target has also been building on its merchandise by adding more private

label brands, redesigning about 300 stores this year and opening smaller

locations in college towns and urban areas to reach a wider audience.

Earlier this week, the company said it was starting a new grocery brand,

Good & Gather, that would hit stores in September.

The retailer expects the brand, which has everything from dairy and

meats to ready to eat pasta, to have more than 2,000 items by the end of

2020.

Its store traffic grew 2.4%, while gross margins improved to 30.6% in the

quarter, benefiting from a better assortment of its products and

competitive pricing.

“The strong gross margin performance despite the slew of weather-driven

markdown concerns highlights the companies balanced mix, strong

execution, and scaling e-commerce strategies,” J.P. Morgan analyst

Christopher Horvers said.

Target said it expected full-year adjusted profit to be between $5.90 and

$6.20 per share, up from the prior range of $5.75 to $6.05 per share. The

outlook accounted for potential additional U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports.

Excluding certain items, the company earned $1.82 per share in the

quarter ended Aug.3, beating the average analyst estimate by 20 cents.

Total revenue rose 3.6% to $18.42 billion, above expectations of $18.34

billion.

The company’s stock, which have risen 29% this year, were on course to

open at a record high, driving gains in other retail players and adding to

broad gains for Wall Street.

Shares of Walmart and Amazon rose 1% in premarket trade and those of

department store operators such as Macy’s were also higher.


Apple plans to tap China's BOE Technology for advanced iPhone screens Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is in the final stages of certifying advanced screens

from Chinese display maker BOE Technology Group Co Ltd (000725.SZ) for

its iPhones, as it attempts to reduce reliance on Samsung Electronics, the

Nikkei reported on Wednesday.

Apple will decide by the end of this year whether to take BOE on as a

supplier of organic light-emitting displays (OLED), the Japanese business

daily reported, citing sources.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The iPhone maker is "aggressively testing" BOE's flexible OLED, raising the

possibility that Apple could for the first time source this advanced display

technology from China, according to the report.


Goldman moves to take majority control of China joint venture Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Goldman Sachs (GS.N) has applied for majority control of its Chinese joint

venture, the bank confirmed on Wednesday, the latest international bank

to do so ahead of Chinese plans to eventually allow foreigners full control.

The bank submitted an application with the China Securities Regulatory

Commission (CSRC) on Monday to take its stake in Goldman Sachs Gao

Hua Securities to 51% - the maximum permitted - from its current 33%

holding.

A spokesman for the bank confirmed the filing, which was first reported by

Bloomberg.

Western banks’ lack of control over the JVs, along with their limited

contribution to revenues, have long been a source of frustration for

foreign banks in China.

Management control would allow foreign banks to offer more services

through their JVs and potentially leverage their global networks to win

China market share, bankers have said.

Unlike most of the other joint ventures, Goldman Sachs already has day-

to-day operational control of its joint venture, which offers investment

banking services such as equities and bond underwriting and deal

advice.

Despite that managerial control, Goldman has long made it clear it would

eventually seek to take a majority stake too.

Under the new agreement submitted to regulators, the securities sales,

trading and research operations that currently sit in the business of its

partner, Beijing Gao Hua Securities, will be folded into the joint venture.

Beijing Gao Hua is controlled by veteran Chinese banker Fang Fenglei.

Goldman’s move to go to 51% follows similar actions by many of its rivals

following a relaxation of the rules in late 2017.

UBS (UBSG.S) was the first to get approval under the new rules as well as

the stake it needed for control. Morgan Stanley (MS.N) is waiting for its

stake purchase to be approved.

JPMorgan (JPM.N) and Nomura (8604.T) have approval and are working

to start up joint ventures from scratch.

Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) is seeking approval to inject fresh capital into its JV

in a move that would take it to 51%.

HSBC (HSBA.L) launched its own majority-controlled joint venture in late

2017 under different rules that allowed Hong Kong-based companies

special access to the mainland.


China approves $18.7 billion of urban railway projects in southwestern city Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

China’s state planner said on Wednesday that it has approved eight

urban railway projects worth a total of 131.83 billion yuan ($18.67 billion) in

the southwestern city of Chengdu.

The projects are expected to span 176.65 kilometers when completed by

2024, the National Development and Reform Committee said in a

statement on its website.


Bankers hawk hedging as trade war hits China's yuan Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

In a Shanghai room packed with small businesses ranging from furniture

makers to garment exporters, Zhu Yuan, a currency expert at Bank of

Communications, explains why Chinese companies need to build their

defenses against currency volatility.

“Currency swings are now largely at the mercy of geopolitics and Sino-

U.S. relations. The yuan’s value is getting nearly impossible to predict,” he

told members of the city’s chamber of commerce.

The yuan has fallen about 11 percent against the dollar since Washington

announced its first hefty tariffs on Chinese imports 17 months ago.

The latest jolt came early this month, when authorities surprised markets by

letting the yuan slide through the psychological support level of 7 to the

dollar to decade lows, unsettling Chinese firms such as exporters and

heavy borrowers of foreign debt.

Executives listened intently as Zhu drew parallels with a house on sale to

explain the basics of one hedging tool, a currency option. It’s like putting

down a deposit, he said, so that one has the right to buy the property in

three months at a fixed price, no matter how prices change.

With no quick end to the trade war in sight, Chinese bankers, consultants

and exchange operators are milking the opportunity to sell risk-mitigating

tools that they claim will allow company bosses to sleep better at night.

“Uncertainty will only increase,” said Zhu Jianhua, a senior executive at

commodities importer Shanhan Resources.

Currency volatility is relatively new for Chinese businesses. Until 2015, when

Beijing adopted a more market-driven currency policy, the heavily

managed yuan had been on an almost uninterrupted decade-long rise

against the dollar.

But the protracted trade war with Washington has spawned increased

uncertainty and volatility.

At the end of 2018, only 230 China-listed companies - less than 7% of total

- were engaged in hedging, as per their disclosures to the exchange.

Analysts say that partly explains why earnings in China, and hence share

prices, are more volatile than those in the United States.

According to Industrial Bank Co, daily average trading in onshore yuan

derivatives accounted for just 0.05% of the country’s total import and

export volumes in 2016, compared with 0.9% in the United States, and

0.88% in Japan.

China Merchant Securities estimates that, if the yuan falls 3% against the

dollar in 2019, China-listed airlines and other transport companies could

see a combined 5.6 billion yuan ($793 million) loss, equivalent to 4.3% of

their net profit.

THE BUSINESS OF RISK

China’s central bank has urged firms to take precautions.

“We hope that companies don’t expose themselves to currency risks too

much,” the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) said on Aug. 5, hours after the

yuan broke through the 7-mark. It said companies should use derivatives

to manage actual business risks, rather than making currency bets.

Zheshang Bank has started promoting an online trading platform for yuan

options. Its advertisements say volatility could easily “wipe out profit”, and

“cause financial losses”.

In addition to embracing onshore hedging tools, an increasing number of

Chinese firms are starting to access overseas derivative markets, which

are often more liquid and less costly.

The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX) (0388.HK) has seen

rapid growth in the trading of futures and options involving the U.S. dollar

and CNH, or offshore yuan. <0#HCUS:> <0#HCUS*.HF>.

In 2018, HKEX’s USD/CNH futures trading volume more than doubled from

a year earlier to almost 1.8 million contracts, and has been rising this year.

Average daily volume in June represented a 173% increase from 2017,

HKEX said on its website.

Rival bourse Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGXL.SI) also reported a boom in

yuan derivatives trading.

In the second quarter this year, trading volume in the exchange’s

USD/CNH futures <0#SUC> surged 119% from a year earlier to $232.4

billion, the bourse said in an emailed statement. Trading in the derivative

has repeatedly set new records this year as trade tension worsened.

“Demand for FX risk management tends to increase during periods of

geopolitical or market uncertainty...,” said KC Lam, Singapore Exchange’s

head of FX and rates.

After heavy losses due to currency swings a few years ago, Golden

Chemical Co, a Chinese chemical importer with annual overseas

purchases of as much as $100 million, now uses both domestic and

overseas derivative tools.

Jin Shengrong, its treasurer, said that since mid-2018, the company

increased hedging: “We therefore avoided quite substantial risks.”


UK expenditure strains budget as Johnson eyes more spending Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Higher government spending ate into Britain’s seasonal budget surplus in

July, underlining the budget constraints facing Prime Minister Boris

Johnson, who has promised to boost outlays as he prepares the country

for Brexit.

The surplus, excluding state-owned banks, stood at 1.319 billion pounds,

below all forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists and down from 3.562

billion pounds in July 2018, official data showed on Wednesday.

July is usually a strong month for the public finances as income tax

payments from individuals bolster revenues.

While most tax receipts edged up compared with a year ago,

government spending was 2.6 billion pounds higher, a 4.2% annual

increase driven by purchases of goods and services and staff costs.

In the first four months of the financial year starting in April, Britain

borrowed 16.0 billion pounds, up 60% compared with a year ago.

While the increase represents a change in direction after a decade of

tight spending restraints to bring down the deficit, the shortfall as a share

of the economy remains small at around 1% of gross domestic product.

In the longer-term, the outlook for the public finances is clouded by Brexit

and uncertainty around government spending.

“With the new prime minister’s apparent shift in focus away from

balancing the government’s budgets, we are likely to see rising levels of

borrowing in the coming months,” Josie Dent, senior economist at

consultancy Cebr, said.

“Furthermore, with a recession possibly on the way, government

intervention may be needed to stimulate the economy.”

Britain’s economy shrank 0.2% in the second quarter, a hangover from the

stockpiling boom in early 2019 in advance of the original Brexit deadline in

March.

While most economists expect a modest rebound in the current quarter,

weak business surveys suggest there is a small chance of another

contraction, the technical definition of a recession.

Johnson has made billions of pounds of new spending commitments in his

first few weeks in office, even before the potential costs of a disruptive,

no-deal Brexit are taken into account.

Ratings agency Moody’s said on Aug. 1 that some of the announcements

raised questions about Johnson’s commitment to bringing down high

levels of public debt.

Finance minister Sajid Javid will give details of his spending plans next

month, before a full annual budget later in the year - assuming Johnson is

able to remain prime minister.

So far this financial year, tax revenues paid by individuals have risen but

businesses taxes are showing signs of a slowdown — chiming with other

data showing a solid consumer economy but a downbeat corporate

sector ahead of Brexit.

The Office for National Statistics said corporation tax revenue for the first

four months of the 2018/19 fell 0.1% — the first drop for any comparable

April-July period since 2013/14.

From next month, the public finances data will incorporate changes to

the treatment of student loans as government debt which is likely to put

further strain on the budget.

Separate data on Wednesday showed Scotland’s budget deficit fell to a

seven-year low but remained much larger as a share of the economy

than in the rest of Britain.


UK fast-tracks firms for customs roll as it readies for Brexit Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Reuters

Britain will automatically enroll nearly 90,000 companies in a customs

system in order to reduce the risk of Brexit disruption, the government said,

its latest attempt to show it can leave the European Union without a deal

if necessary.

More than 88,000 companies which are in Britain’s value-added tax

register will be allocated an Economic Operator Registration and

Identification (EORI) number in the next two weeks, the finance ministry

said on Wednesday.

So far, around 72,000 firms have registered for EORI numbers which identify

them for customs authorities.

“As the government accelerates its preparation to leave the EU on Oct.

31, it’s right businesses are prepared too,” finance minister Sajid Javid said.

“This will help ease the flow of goods at border points and support

businesses to trade and grow.”

A group representing small businesses welcomed the move but said

companies also urgently needed tax measures to boost cash-flow and

adapt to any new trading circumstances from Nov. 1.

“If the nightmare of a chaotic no-deal Brexit on Oct. 31 becomes a

reality, our small traders will be the first ones off the cliff,” Mike Cherry,

chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said.

The FSB and the Confederation of British Industry, another employers

group, have previously urged the government to issue EURI numbers

automatically to businesses.

New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he wants Britain to leave the EU

with a transition deal but he says he is prepared for a no-deal Brexit if the

bloc does not renegotiate the deal it struck with his predecessor Theresa

May.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has warned that many

companies are not ready for the shock of a no-deal Brexit, adding to the

risk of a shock for the economy.

Johnson’s government plans to double the support available for customs

agents to train new staff or invest in technology to help businesses

complete customs declarations.


CAL official airline for World Interhash 2020 Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Trinidad Express Newspaper

Caribbean Airlines (CAL) is the official airline for the World Interhash 2020

which will take place in Trinidad and Tobago from April 23-26, 2020.

The airline will welcome more than 4,000 visitors to Trinidad and Tobago

from over 250 Interhash chapters across 75 countries worldwide who will

participate in the World Interhash 2020.

The World Interhash is a weekend of events which comprises more than 28

trail runs across Trinidad and Tobago.

The sports eco-tourism event challenges participants with trails that run

through the hills and valleys of the islands.

Commenting on the partnership, Caribbean Airlines executive manager,

Marketing and Loyalty, Alicia Cabrera, said, 'Our Caribbean identity is

unique and infectious and we are pleased to be named the official airline

for the World Interhash 2020; and we look forward to offering a true

Caribbean welcome to our international and regional visitors joining us on

board.'

Registered participants can get a discount of 15 per cent.

Dubbed the 'Carnival of Hashes', visitors will be taken to Port of Spain on a

'Red Dress Charity' run on the evening of April 23, 2020 where participants

in red dresses will run throughout the city ending at HADCO Phase II

panyard, where they experience their first Carnival Experience.

The next day, early morning on April 24, they will experience their first ever

Jouvert run, CAL said in a statement.


JMMB leads trading Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Trinidad Express Newspaper

OVERALL stock market yesterday activity resulted from trading in 16

securities of which three advanced, three declined and ten traded firm.

Trading activity on the First Tier Market registered a volume of 912,798

shares crossing the floor of the Exchange valued at $8,756,517.18.

JMMB Group Ltd was the volume leader with 570,760 shares changing

hands for a value of $1,255,672.

Sagicor Financial Corporation Ltd registered the day's largest gain,

increasing $0.13 to end the day at $10.48.

Conversely, the West Indian Tobacco Company Ltd registered the day's

largest decline, falling $1 to close at $109.

CLICO Investment Fund was the only active security on the Mutual Fund

Market, posting a volume of 16,704 shares valued at $402,873.38.

The Second Tier Market did not witness any activity.

The SME Market did not witness any activity.

The USD Equity Market did not witness any activity.


Huawei looking to boost T&T's ICT Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Trinidad Express Newspaper

In the last four years Chinese tech firm, Huawei, has invested $272 million

(US$40 million) in Trinidad and Tobago.

'And we will continue to invest in developing this country because we

have long-term plans for T& T,' pledged Jeff Jin, Huawei's newly appointed

chief executive officer for T& T and the Eastern Caribbean.

Among those plans is Jin's 'personal goal' of T& T transforming into the ICT

hub of the Eastern Caribbean.

'Why not? You already have the infrastructure,' he said.

Express Business sat with Jin on Monday, at the Huawei's T& T office on the

Western side of the Queen's Park Savannah, where he expanded on his

focus for the T& T market and briefly discussed the recent US trade

sanctions against the company.

The 41-year-old officially took up office on July 18.

He is responsible for overseeing strategic growth, development and

overall operations for all of T& T and the Eastern Caribbean.

It has already been an exciting first month for the sports enthusiast,

judging from his broken left arm which he sustained during a friendly

football match with his new colleagues here.

Plans for T& T

In terms of technology and communications, T& T is already in a 'good

position,' Jin said.

'This country, based on the ICT Development Index is at number 68

globally. It's not very high but you are still leading in most countries in the

Latin American region. In terms of the Technological Index, T& T ranks

49th,' he noted.

"My priority, firstly, is to keep this leading ICT position and to build a fully

connected, smarter Trinidad and Tobago,' he said.

Having worked in many parts of the world over the past 16 years,

including in Europe, Central America and Asia-Pacific, Jin observed that

while technology is important, of more importance is people's ability to

adapt and embrace technological changes.

He said that's why his second area of focus is developing local ICT talent.

Huawei's T& T office employs over 30 people, most of whom are local.

"Internally, we do a lot of staff training. We encourage people to learn

and provide opportunities for training and development,' said. For

example, he said, members of the team are sent for training in countries

like Mexico, China and Panama.

'And externally, for this market, I want to focus on developing more talent.

For instance, at Huawei we have the Seeds of the Future programme,

which is our flagship corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme we

started in Trinidad in 2016. We have already sent 30 ICT university students

to China to get hands-on ICT training,' he noted.

On Monday, Huawei was a hive of activity as it started its six-months long

internship programme. Four UTT and UWI graduates are part of the

programme.

Jin's third area of focus is improving the brand's visibility in T& T.

'My personal goal is for Huawei to be the most loved brand in this country.

I want people to know about us, to believe in us and to trust us, because

we have been in this country for 13 years already. For me, this should be

the local brand,' he went on. T& T market stable and strong.

On hand for the interview was Huawei sales and marketing manager,

Jason Ifill, who noted that the company has grown significantly since

arriving in T& T in 2006.

'We had challenges like many other brands, based on the economy,

based on TSTT closing their retail network. Previously we partnered closely

with TSTT but now we sell to the open market, meaning most of the

Bmobile and Digicel dealer stores,' he explained.

'This year, 2019, so far has been strong. I think our portfolio has gotten even

better. Our 'Y' series is really strong, in spite of any global issues,' he added.

Ifill noted that when Huawei first entered the T& T, it worked closely with

TSTT as a carrier partner.

He said the consumer side of the business only started in 2015.

'Since then we've had some launches as we tried to penetrate the retail

market. But in the near future we intend to invest some more, build our

presence and do stronger retail branding,' he said.

Reflecting on Huawei's 2019 financial performance globally, Jin

highlighted that in the first six months of the year, the firm's revenues

increased by 23 per cent to US$58 billion, compared to last year.

He said last year alone, Huawei invested US$15 billion in research and

development (R& D), which accounted for about 15 per cent of its

revenue.

And in the last 10 years, the company has invested US$4 billion for 5G.

'So it's not that we're investing small money for one year or the short-term.

Everything we do is for the long-term,' he said US sanctions.

In May, the US government blacklisted Huawei, deeming it a national

security risk.

Huawei T& T CEO Jeff Jin at the company's Queen's Park West, Port of

Spain, office on Monday. -Photo: JERMAINE CRUICKSHANK This meant that

US firms aren't allow to sell the company technology without government

approval.

Jin said he did not want to comment much on the issue, but stressed: 'We

are 32 years old, we are a young company, but we are growing fast. We

are in 170 countries, but up to now there have been no confirmed

cybersecuri ty cases against Huawei.'

'We have the lawsuit in the US. The court will make the right decision.'

Despite the sanctions, he said the company continued to do quite well,

evidenced by the 23 per cent half-year revenue growth and the

continued support from customers, globally and in T& T.

'We feel very proud and confident that people will continue to support

the business here,' he stated.

'What we are going to do is to use our legal way to fight it but internally,

each country will continue to provide the best possible support to our

customers. That is the most important thing for us.'


Digicel raises prices for some of its products Monday 19th August, 2019 – Trinidad and Tobago Guardian

Digicel has raised its prices on some of its offerings effective August 15,

2019. In a response to questions by Guardian Media, the company said:

“...due to higher programming costs, it became necessary to adjust the

prices on some of the packages, which only directly affects around five

per cent of our customer base.”

The telecommunications company continued: “Obtaining maximum

value is important to our customers, and the company, therefore, works

diligently to keep costs under control.”

The “Play Now” package was increased from $319 to $339, the “Play

More” bundle from $369 to $389 and the “Première” offering went up from

$579 to $599.

Digicel continued to express that they have also launched a new Modern

Fibre offering to cater to the specific needs, lifestyles and budgets of their

customers. The company said: “This new product allows customers to

tailor their entertainment and broadband packages with prices starting

from as low $299 and TV add-ons from $29.”

Digicel Home and Entertainment, over the past three years, has supplied

its customers with TV content and broadband services.

Recently, almost all of the holders of US$2 billion Digicel bonds, due for

repayment in 2020, agreed in January 2019, accepted to postpone

getting their money back by exchanging their holdings for notes that

mature in 2022.

According to one media outlet, there can be issues with bond repayment

if the wider Digicel Group runs into financial trouble in the future. Weeks

ago, Digicel T&T spoke to the Business Guardian, saying that the

organisation is not encountering financial difficulty and restructuring is not

in its pipeline.

Also responding to notions of restructuring in other media outlets, Digicel

executives have reassured investors that the company’s future is strong.


PricewaterhouseCoopers praises Dominica for use of CBI funds Tuesday 20th August, 2019 – Dominica News Online

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), one of the world’s largest multinational

professional services firms, has praised Dominica for the good use of the

funds generated from the Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme.

The report, prepared with the cooperation of the government of

Dominica, aims to provide an overview of the contribution of the CBI to

short-term recovery from natural disasters and Dominica’s long-term

transition to a climate resilient, service-based economy. It contains

analysis of the expenditure supported by funds raised by the CBI and an

assessment of the economic and fiscal effects generated.

“…PwC concludes that Dominica’s Citizenship by Investment Programme

(CBIP) has had a major impact on the island’s resilience, and is likely to

remain a significant driver of sustainability,” the report stated.

The analysis stated that since the passage of Hurricane Maria, in

September 2017, EC$582.6-million has been spent from CBI funds to

support recovery efforts, such as the rehabilitation of damaged roads and

bridges, the construction of three hospitals and six health centres, and the

repair of damaged schools. The program also facilitated the construction

of hurricane-resilient homes, five hotels and ecolodges, “creating over

1,000 jobs during construction phases, providing direct employment for

approximately 900 hospitality workers, and supporting the livelihoods of

those connected with tourism across the island, such as farmers,

fishermen, taxi drivers, and tour operators.”

PwC estimates that expenditure under the CBI programme could increase

GDP by about EC$150 million and tax receipts by nearly EC$30 million. The

firm also predicts that the CBI funds will significantly impact Dominica’s

long-term economic potential.

“The investment in hotels and tourism should generate future revenue

streams for the island, which could be between EC$90 million and EC$140

million each year,” the report detailed. “The fiscal benefits of this could be

between EC$20 million and EC$40 million each year.”

The PwC analysis is based on quantitative data collected from the

Government of the Commonwealth of Dominica and qualitative data

gathered during interviews with stakeholders, conducted in Dominica, in

July 2019.

The report was commissioned by CS Global Partners Ltd, an international

legal consultancy firm, which is supporting the governments of Dominica,

Saint Lucia and St Kitts and Nevis to promote their CBI programmes.


EFresh posts loss after meat business consolidation Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Gleaner

Higher operating expenses pushed food distributor Everything Fresh

Limited into the red in the June quarter, as the importer and distributor

integrated the recently acquired Meat Experts into its operation.

Everything Fresh revenue improved by five per cent to $520.5 million,

compared to $494 million in the 2018 period, but it was not enough to

offset the impact of the added costs, which more than doubled to $80

million.

The result was a loss of $28.8 million for the company in the second

quarter.

Everything Fresh faced one-off costs associated with the meat division,

and a dip in sales due to the temporary closure of a major client’s

operation.

“Sales of the traditional business dipped by 7 per cent versus the prior year

as one of our major hospitality industry relationships closed for a major

refurbishing exercise and will reopen early in the fourth quarter of this

financial year,” said Managing Director Courtney Pullen in a statement

accompanying the company’s quarterly results.

Meat Experts administrative expenses stood at approximately $28.6 million

for the quarter, while cost of sales as at the half year totalled $159.5 million

for the division, to include one-off charges in the second quarter of $7.3

million.

The heightened expenses also resulted in Everything Fresh posting a loss of

$28 million for its half year, which was mainly attributable to a loss of $57.7

million in the meats division. Sales in the period grew from $968 million to

$1.11 billion. The company also suffered from lower margins due to costs

related to its new wholesale business and increases in electricity charges,

foreign exchange losses and administrative expenses.

The company’s cash was also depleted from $213.6 million to $7.8 million.

Operating from 78 Marcus Garvey Drive in Kingston, Everything Fresh

imports and distributes dairy, meats, assorted dry and canned goods, fruits

and vegetables, seafood and meats locally. The company is a major

supplier to hotel brands, including Secrets, Iberostar, Bahia, Couples,

Jewels, Royalton, and Fiesta, as well as supermarkets and retail outlets.

In February, the 16-year-old distribution company announced that it had

pumped $50 million into the acquisition of St Catherine-based abattoir,

Meat Experts Limited, marking its entry into manufacturing. The acquisition

not only adds several new products to Everything Fresh’s portfolio but is

also expected to reduce costs for the company over time while

expanding its partnerships with local livestock and produce farmers.

Meat Experts has its own abattoir, cutting, processing, packaging and

cold storage facilities and logistics network in Bog Walk. The plant is

currently operating at approximately 30 per cent capacity but Pullen

expects to continue growing sales to improve the utilisation of the factory

while absorbing the associated overhead costs of the plant.


FosRich reports flat half-year after tax audit, new plant Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Gleaner

Electrical company FosRich expects to bounce back from a flat half-year,

saying its performance to date resulted from one-off events, including an

unexpected tax bill.

Managing Director Cecil Foster says the company, which recently added

manufacturing to its operations, was also hit by expenditures related to

the new unit.

Although revenue grew at a healthy 26 per cent clip to $746.4 million,

FosRich’s profits barely inched up by two per cent to $61.7 million at half

year ending June.

“There were two factors to consider there,” said Foster. “On one hand, we

invested heavily in upgrading the team both through training and new

members. On the other, the authorities audited us, and while we’ve

appealed their ruling, we made provision for the tax assessment,” he told

the Financial Gleaner.

As a listed junior stock market company, FosRich is entitled to a full waiver

on corporate taxes for five years and a 50 per cent waiver for another

five. The company entered the market in December 2017.

The audit conducted by the Taxpayer Audit and Assessment Department

relates to FosRich’s 2016 income tax returns, but Foster says that while the

company agrees with most aspects of the findings, it has challenged

others. The company has made a provision of $16 million for the tax

assessment.

FosRich, up to this year, was solely a distributor of electrical and energy

products, inclusive of brands such as Nexans, Siemens and GE. Its PVC

pipe and conduit extrusion plant was commissioned in May after a $150-

million investment.

New hires for the production facility included a business and relationship

manager and a new general manager, plus other staff.

“We have invested in new staff for the manufacturing plant. We took on

28 people, and so far, we are reaping the benefits of that, judging by

what we’re seeing in July and so far in August,” Foster said.

“If the trend continues, then the third quarter will outdo all the other

quarters. One month has already gone, and it has been the best month in

our history. We can’t say too much, but let’s see what the rest of August

and September will bring,” he said.

Meanwhile, FosRich has contracted tTech Limited, a tech firm also listed

on the junior market, to help modernise its inventory system.

“They are helping us to implement a major part of our

warehousing/inventory-management system, along with having us fully

digitised by the end of the year to take on the demands of the modern

marketplace,” Foster said.


Celebration Brands commissions Logic One warehouse Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Gleaner

Celebration Brands Limited, which is jointly operated by Red Stripe

Jamaica and partner Pepsi-Cola Jamaica, opened a new warehouse on

Spanish Town Road in Kingston on Tuesday that it has branded as Logic

One.

The moniker, as described by Celebration, encapsulates the re-

engineering of the Kingston distribution centre “to satisfy the necessities of

the companies’ future market”.

Edwin Vaquerano, managing director of Celebration Brands, said that

around US$4 million was spent on the first phase of the build-out of Logic

One and that the other phases await board approval.

Celebration Brands is a 50:50 sales and distribution joint venture company

selling and distributing all Red Stripe and Pepsi brands in Jamaica.

Its portfolio includes Johnnie Walker, Red Stripe, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B,

Baileys, Tanqueray, Pepsi, Ocean Spray, Aqua Essential, and D&G sodas.

The first of Celebration’s depots opened in Mandeville in April 2017,

followed by a second in St Ann two months later.

The new warehouse in Kingston, which is 3,200 square metres in size, with a

height of 1,600 metres, complies with the requirements of parent

companies Heineken and Pepsi-Cola Jamaica, Vaquerano said.

“Here, we can allocate approximately 150,000 cases of product. It’s

about efficiency. Not every SKU (stock-keeping unit) has the same

turnover, but 150,000 will last approximately 10 days,” he explained.

Logic One was described as the brainchild of operations and services

director Fenton Wheelock. The warehouse, which is the size of two

professional football fields, was first approved in April 2018.

Celebration also modernised the administration building; made changes

to vehicular flow on the compound; and added LED lights, electronic

forklifts and rainwater harvesting during the expansion.

The company said that when phase two is completed more than 100

vehicles, including trailers and trucks, will be dispatched from this new

distribution centre. The full project is scheduled to be completed at the

end of 2020.

“Logistically, we are allocating more space but maximising the movement

between warehouses,” the managing director said.

The Kingston operation houses two other warehouses and a production

plant. Vaquerano said that the introduction of Logic One would remove

three steps previously taken in moving product, reducing movement to

two steps from five.

The possibility of introducing racks for storage will also under consideration

in later phases.

“The warehouse is very high. Racks can double the capacity of the

warehouse,” Vaquerano said.


First Rock makes first foreign acquisitions - Plans to list on JSE by year end Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Gleaner

Ryan Reid, president and CEO of First Rock Capital, is set to travel to Costa

Rica this week to oversee a residential transaction in that country valued

at US$3 million.

Pierre Shirley, vice-president in charge of real estate business, is in Guyana

overseeing another deal.

Those excursions follow disclosures by the company last Friday of the

purchase of five residential units in West Bay Cayman and two units in a

luxury high-rise in Brickell, Miami, in the United States – acquisitions into

which First Rock has pumped US$4 million.

First Rock hung its shingle in 2018 as an investor in income-producing real

estate and other companies. Since then, it has executed deals worth

close to US$20 million inside and outside Jamaica and has earmarked

funds for other investments.

The start-up investment company, which has committed 80 per cent of

capital to real estate projects, is also preparing to go public and list on the

main market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange by year end, Reid disclosed.

The current round of deals is First Rock’s first outside of Jamaica.

“We are informed by our capital allocation limit for each jurisdiction.

Guyana is a jurisdiction on our radar,” said Reid. “We will only deploy

capital in economies or jurisdictions that exhibit economic growth. There

are certain places you won’t see us, for instance, like a Barbados.”

He did not elaborate, but Guyana has struck oil and is expected to grow

its economy as a result, while Barbados is in economic crisis and

attempting to reform its economy.

Reid said First Rock was reviewing a pipeline of US$100 million in

prospective deals.

In March, the company raised $2.5 billion of capital from private investors,

which translates to US$19.8 million. Its financing deals since then have

included a mix of debt and equity.

“Looking at the opportunities now on the table, we have quite a few. Our

pipeline is now at US$100 million,” said Reid. “What it allows for us is to

cherry-pick opportunities. It’s a good problem to have. We have more

opportunities than money.”

The pending initial public offering (IPO) of shares in First Rock will give the

company additional capital for project financing.

“That process we expect to take a couple months. The details of that we

are deliberating on internally. But that process is to commence soon,” he

said.

The company is yet to select a broker to arrange the offer. As to the IPO

target, Reid said that would be determined by the company’s pipeline of

deals and was yet to be finalised.

The investment in Cayman was done through subsidiary First Capital

Cayman Limited. The residential complex is under construction and

scheduled for completion in February 2020.

The acquisitions in Florida were made through First Rock USA LLC.

First Rock’s foray into Miami comes as another Jamaican real estate

company, Kingston Properties Limited, is reducing its footprint in that

market.

Reid acknowledged the withdrawal but noted that First Rock, a company

he co-founded, sees geographic diversification as important to its business

strategy and sees opportunity in the United States market.

“We, being a new entity, one of our objectives is cross-jurisdictional

exposure as a part of our risk-mitigation strategy,” he said.

“The US market is mature, sophisticated and predictable. Our acquisitions

are primarily based on cash flows and not speculation on appreciated

values.”

Inside Jamaica, First Rock is weighing two private-equity transactions in

the financial services sector. At least one should close before year end,

Reid said.

Its local real estate portfolio is weighted towards commercial holdings,

with limited residential holdings restricted to the luxury short-term rental

market and property bought pre-construction for capital appreciation.

The first commercial property, located near Half-Way Tree in Kingston, was

acquired for US$3 million and is fully tenanted, said Reid, who declined to

name the property, saying it would disclose the identity of the seller.

“The return on equity for that is just north of 10 per cent,” he said.

First Rock has also purchased a 1.5-acre property in Barbican, Kingston,

and has hired contractor Relmac Construction Company to construct a

four-to five-floor commercial building to be marketed as office space. The

project is valued at US$5 million and due for delivery in 18 months, Reid

said.

Three luxury villas on the north coast were purchased for just under US$1

million. Five residential units – luxury townhouses and apartments – were

acquired pre-construction in Barbican for more than US$2 million and are

due for completion in 2020.

Reid said that the two private-equity transactions being pursued would

give First Rock a majority stake in each company.


Second-quarter profit falls at Jetcon; reverses years of solid growth Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Observer

Jetcon Corporation Limited (Jetcon) managing director Andrew Jackson

is informing that for the second quarter ended June 2019, the company's

net profit of $8.67 million has reversed three years of solid growth for the

company. Jetcon recorded a net profit of $34.71 million in the prior year.

“The second quarter was another challenging one for Jetcon

Corporation,” Jackson stated in the unaudited report to shareholders on

Wednesday last (August 14).

“Revenues decreased by 26 per cent to $221 million, compared with $300

million in the June 2018 quarter,” he continued.

The pre-owned car dealership experienced a decrease in gross margin,

from 18.9 per cent for the corresponding quarter in 2018 to 16.5 per cent

for the quarter under review.

According to Jackson, the reduced margin occurred due to the

reduction in prices to move inventories during the first half of the year, as a

strategy by the management team to combat the downturn results.

However, he added that he expects the company to offer less discounts

as the year progresses.

Despite Jetcon's revenues and profit falling by 22 per cent and 34 per

cent for the first half of 2019, Jackson assured that the company has seen

positive developments since June, with sales up 10 per cent ahead of

2018 in June and July.

“Inventory of motor vehicles and parts have increased by 14 per cent

since June 2017 to reach $477.6 million; an ongoing deliberate strategy to

increase choice for customers and sales heading into [quarter three],

historically our strongest quarter in sales, aided by the use of the new

Special Economic Zone,” Jackson said.

The special economic zone refers to the area in which the business and

trade laws are different from the rest of the country.

Earnings per share ended at 1.49 cents, a decrease compared to the 6.58

cents recorded in 2018, while total receivables amounted to $52 million,

which included amounts deposited with suppliers for goods.

The company started to pay out a dividend of three cents per share on

August 15.


Profit falls 55% at Kingston Properties Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Observer

Kingston Properties Limited (KPREIT) reported on Thursday last (August 15)

an unaudited after-tax surplus of $28.6 million, for the six months ended

June 30, 2019, despite a 55 per cent decrease due to unrealised foreign

exchange losses incurred on net assets when compared to gains in the

prior year. The company recorded $6 million in unrealized foreign

exchange losses and a $1.8 million tax charge.

Chief executive officer (CEO) Kevin Richards, in reporting to shareholders,

indicated KPREIT recorded $63.5 million in the first half of 2018, primarily

due to a combination of nearly $31 million of unrealised foreign exchange

gains coupled with another $31 million of tax credits.

Despite these results, Richards indicated that the group's earnings before

interest and taxes amounted to $61.4 million, an increase compared to

the $24.1 million recorded in the prior year.

“This was primarily due to a net fair value gain on investment property of

$23.8 million, after recording a loss on disposal of investment properties

following the sale of two condo units in Florida, as well as an impairment

loss of $4.2 million due to the group's adoption of IFRS 9,” he stated.

The International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) provides a common

global language for business affairs so that company accounts are

understandable and comparable across international boundaries.

“Operating expenses for [the period under review] declined by 3.6 per

cent to $66.1 million from $68.5 million the same prior year period; [this is]

reflected by lower HOA fees and property taxes — two of our largest

expense items,” he stated.

Homeowners Association (HOA) fees refer to the amount of money that

must be paid monthly by owners of certain types of residential properties

to assist with maintaining and improving properties in the association.

“Funds from operations for the first half of 2019 amounted to $28 million

compared to $18.6 million in 2018; this represents a year-on-year

improvement of 51 per cent and highlights the group's intention to

consistently generate strong net cash flows from its operations,” Richards

continued.

Total assets stood at $2.875 billion as at June 30, 2019, an increase of 7.6

per cent over the $2.672 billion balance as at June 30, 2018. Richard

added that the group continues to generate higher cash balances in

2019 compared with 2018, largely from the proceeds of assets; the cash

will be used in the acquisition of new properties.

“Our strategy remains focused on prudently funding the acquisition of

properties with strong fundamentals and attractive cash yields,” he

stated.

“We continue to monitor developments in the economies in which we

own properties and remain bullish on the Jamaican and especially the

Caymanian economies.”

The CEO indicated that on August 2, 2019, at an extraordinary general

meeting, KPREIT shareholders approved the increase in share capital of

the company to one billion ordinary shares to facilitate a renounceable

rights issue to be executed shortly; a strategy to substantially increase

KPREIT's capital base over the next three years.


General Accident reports after-tax profit of $135.28 million for first six

months of 2019 Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Observer

General Accident Insurance Company Jamaica Limited (General

Accident), on Friday (August 16) reported an after-tax profit of $135.28

million for the six months ended June 30, 2019. This represents a 42 per

cent increase compared to the previous corresponding period.

Chairman of General Accident, P B Scott, in reporting to stockholders,

indicated that the company enjoyed improved technical results as

underwriting profit of $80.97 million represents positive growth over the

prior period's underwriting loss of $7.67 million.

“For the period, General Accident's underwriting performance improved

over 2018 as we booked gross written premium of $6.56 billion, an increase

of 41 per cent over the same period last year,” he stated in the report.

“Net earned premiums improved by 29 per cent to $988 million while net

claims charges grew by 23 per cent to $633 million,” he continued.

Underwriting refers to the process that a lender or other financial service

uses to assess the creditworthiness or risk of a potential customer, while

premium is the amount paid periodically to the insurer by the insured for

covering his/her risk.

“Our investment income for the first half of 2019 was $79.06 million, 12 per

cent below prior year of $89.81 million; this represents an annualised return

of 4.53 per cent,” he said.

“General Accident ended the second quarter with a book value of $2.19

billion and generated annualised return on average equity for

shareholders of 12.8 per cent”.

The company for the quarter under review recorded a book value of

$2.19 billion, an increase when compared to the $2.02 billion recorded the

prior year.

Scott added that administrative expenses increased by 19 per cent when

compared to the same period last year.

He declared that General Accident remains in compliance with the

capital adequacy and liquidity metrics prescribed by the Financial

Services Commission — the regulatory body that oversees Jamaica's

insurance, pension and securities industries.


GWest venturing into telemedicine with Digicel Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Jamaica Observer

Western Jamaica medical outfit, GWest Corporation is teaming up with

Digicel to venture into telemedicine in Jamaica.

GWest, which is buckling under severe financial problems having chalked

up millions of dollars in losses since it went public two years ago, is utilising

this new area of business to prop up its earnings.

Starting next month, Digicel will be rolling out a subscription-based

telemedicine platform for beta testing.

Telemedicine is the remote delivery of health care services, such as health

assessments or consultations, over a telecommunications infrastructure. It

allows health care providers to evaluate, diagnose and treat patients

using common technology — such as video conferencing and

smartphones — without the need for an in-person visit.

GWest will sign up to be the first medical provider in western Jamaica on

the Digicel platform. According to GWest, “this smartphone-based

platform will utilise our physicians and provide referrals to its services. It will

also have applications for the hospitality industry.”

GWest says, “the implementation of the tele-medicine platform by Digicel

will bring further visibility and access to our health care offerings”.

TELE-MEDICINE IN JAMAICA

Last year the government embarked on a telemedicine pilot project for

persons in remote areas to access medical specialists at the University

Hospital of the West Indies, in conjunction with a major

telecommunications provider. It is being done under the Tele-medicine

Proof of Concept (POC) project with Flow Jamaica, with an aim of

reducing the time to deliver patient care by linking them, via

teleconferencing/video conferencing, with specialist physicians and

clinicians from health centres and certain hospitals, through mobile

devices.

Minister of Health Dr Christopher Tufton, who launched the project

officially on October 10 last year at the Kitson Town Health Centre in St

Catherine, said the May Pen Hospital in Clarendon will be part of the trial

period for the new system.

GWEST SEEKING PARTNERS

Gwest is searching for partnerships to undertake a joint venture to build an

outdoor surgery centre and possibly a paediatric centre to further boost

its revenue and take the company out of the red.

GWest chairman, Dr Konrad Kirlew disclosed that the company has

already engaged “local surgeons and investors to joint venture in

completing our surgery centre.

“This facility is a cornerstone of our medical services which, integrated with

our existing medical units, will enable GWest to provide a comprehensive

health care product that will positively impact our income stream.” He

said in the upcoming financial year, the Montego Bay based listed

company expects increased revenue contributions from the medical units

already in operation, and an increase in its share of the local health care

market.

“The ongoing issues with health care in the public sector represent an

opportunity for growth,” Dr Kirlew reasoned. He noted that the cost-saving

measures such as the rationalisation of staff, which is estimated to save

$10 million annually is already bearing fruit. Additionally, the sale of several

investment units is in progress, which upon completion will provide cash

flow to support the business operations.

According to Dr Kirlew, “thus far these actions have already resulted in

successes, and we are confident that the company will continue as a

going concern”.


Dominican economy rebounds in 2018, continues in 2019: IMF Tuesday 20th August, 2019 – Dominican Today

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday said Dominican

Republic’s economy grew a record 7% in 2018, with a momentum that

carried over to the first part of 2019.

The data is in the results of the IMF’s Article IV consultation made with the

country. “The return to growth above potential in 2018 reflected a strong

response from investment and private consumption to a timely monetary

stimulus after the slowdown in 2017, to favourable external conditions and

a continuous strengthening of the labour market.”

“The strong economic performance in recent years, supported by public

policies, has resulted in a substantial reduction in poverty, inequality and

continuous convergence of income at the levels of advanced

economies,” the report said.


Venezuela's PDVSA debt to Russia's Rosneft down to $1.1 billion in second

quarter Wednesday 21st August, 2019 - Reuters

Venezuelan state-owned oil company PDVSA had lowered its outstanding

debt to Rosneft to $1.1 billion by the end of the second quarter, from $1.8

billion as of the end of the first quarter, Rosneft said on Wednesday.

Rosneft, Russia’s largest oil producer, also said its net debt rose to $45.7

billion in the second quarter from $43.9 billion at the end of the first three

months of 2019.


Humanitarian Assistance to be Scaled-up for Millions of Venezuelans in

Need Tuesday 20th August, 2019 – Caribbean 360

The United Nations humanitarian wing launched a new Response Plan

(HRP) on Wednesday, that aims to help around 2.6 million people in

Venezuela through to the end of the year, almost half of whom are youth.

Noting that the plan “only represents a limited number of all people in

need”, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA),

said that US$223 million was required from donors, to achieve this goal.

A collective effort to coordinate and intensify the ongoing humanitarian

response, the plan aims to significantly mitigate the impact of the crisis on

the country’s most vulnerable populations.

“The HRP includes 1.2 million girls and boys, in the areas of health, water,

sanitation and hygiene, food security, nutrition, protection, shelter and

non-food items and education,” Peter Grohmann, Humanitarian

Coordinator for Venezuela, said in the strategy’s foreword.

During the first half of 2019, the UN set up a coordination system to

increase humanitarian response capacities that included national and

international non-governmental humanitarian organizations (NGOs) and

the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement as an observer,

with OCHA lending overarching support.

“This HRP provides an internationally recognized framework for a

principled, transparent, well-coordinated and effective response,

targeting the most vulnerable people,” said the newly designated

Humanitarian Coordinator, who leads the humanitarian country team. “I

urgently call on donors to support this plan.”

At the same time, Grohmann also called on the Venezuelan Government,

society and the international community “to work together and jointly

commit to helping Venezuelans in need of assistance, including by

creating consensus on ways to finance the plan”.

By strengthening the capacity of humanitarian organizations and further

opening the operational space in country, the HRP lays the foundation to

enlarge its response next year to reach a larger portion of the population.

While its operational capacities are on target to deliver, the HRP is

“modest in terms of responding to the scale of needs”, Grohmann

maintained, adding that the plan would be revised and expanded next

year, “based on new available information on needs and capacities”.


Service and construction sector grow by 4.6% -Report finds this is the

highest in eight years Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Kaieteur News

Based on the findings of the Mid-Year Report 2019, which was presented

by the Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, the service sector is estimated

to have grown by 4.6 percent in the first half of 2019.

According to the report this percentage is the highest half-year rate since

2011.

This increase was driven by wholesale and retail trade, transportation and

storage, financial and insurance activities, rental of dwellings, and other

service activities, which grew by 5.9 percent, 5.5 percent, 4.1 percent, 5.9

percent, and 10 percent, respectively.

The reports added that that such a momentum is expected to continue

into the second half of the year, as signaled by businesses in the services

sector increasing their borrowing by 7.2 percent in the first half.

Moreover, the findings of the report indicated that there has been

increased borrowing for real estate of 5.7 percent, which has contributed

to an estimated 8.2 percent growth in the construction sector over the

same period.

Also contributing to the sector’s growth was Government expenditure on

construction activities, through the Public Sector Investment Programme

(PSIP), which increased by 12.4 percent in the first half of 2019.

According to the Minister’s statistics reflected in the report, in 2019, the

services sector is expected to grow by 4.3 percent, which is 0.6

percentage points above the projection in Budget 2019, while growth in

the construction sector is anticipated to remain unchanged from the

initial projection of 10.5 percent. 3.15

At the time of Budget 2019, the economy was forecast to grow at a rate

of 4.6 percent in 2019. This was later revised downwards to 4.4 percent in

April 2019, given the better-than-expected outturn for 2018.

Based on the performance of the various sectors in the first half of 2019,

the projected growth rate for this year has been revised upwards to 4.5

percent.


Bahamian Brewery Expands in Nassau Tuesday 20th August, 2019 – Tribune 242

The Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company has moved to an

expanded three-acre warehouse and office complex in Nassau’s Airport

Industrial Park to serve its continued growth.

The brewer and distributor of Sands Beer, and brands such as Bush Crack,

High Rock lager, Strong Back stout, Triple B malt and Sands Passion Radler,

said yesterday that the new 30,000 square foot warehouse will enable it to

increase product volumes, carry more inventory and better serve

customers.

The facility has a refrigerated drive-in zone to accommodate the

company’s wide selection of wine and tobacco products. Completion of

its construction has enabled Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company

to hire six extra staff members for the warehouse.

“The larger warehouse is really a dream,” said manager Bryan Thurston.

“Having the space to carry more inventory will allow us to better meet our

customers’ demands in both the breadth of products they order and

delivery time.”

Bahamian contractors performed the refurbishment, including TMC

Engineering, which replaced the roof with its Star Building quality metal

product. The new site also houses the Nassau corporate office.

Spread across nearly three acres of land, the new warehouse is in close

proximity to the fast-growing western New Providence community. The

Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company intends to service this

expansion with a ninth Jimmy’s Wines and Spirits location, which is set to

open in late summer.

“Since the very beginning, our mission has been to provide our customers

with great products and experiences. Thanks to the support of our loyal

customers over the last 10-plus years, we have been able to outgrow our

current premises and need larger facilities,” said Gary Sands, the

company’s general manager. “With this expansion, we hope to improve

the quality of service we can give them in return.”

Despite the distribution centre’s relocation from Nassau Street, the ‘Bottle

Return Depot’ will remain at that location, acting as the hub for the

company’s recycling initiative. The operational hours for the depot are

Monday through Friday from 8 am to noon.

“We are glad to keep that connection to the community alive as it

demonstrates our core value of being ‘Truly Bahamian’. We truly

appreciate your support and would like to extend a sincere thank you on

behalf of the Bahamian Brewery Family,” said Nathanial Middleton,

manager of the Nassau Street operation.

The Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company currently collects about

50 percent of the beer bottles it sells but expects this percentage to

increase. The bottle buy-back program was expanded to Abaco in July in

a bid to reduce waste going to the landfill, create micro-economies, and

offer customers a better price.

When the company opened its flagship retail store in Grand Bahama,

Jimmy’s Wines and Spirits, it was primarily designed to take its brands to its

customers and help promote sales. Jimmy’s now boasts eight distribution

centers in New Providence, North Eleuthera, Freeport, and Marsh Harbour.

Along with the locally-produced beer, Jimmy’s is the distributor for

Anheuser-Busch and Philip Morris International products, as well as brands

such as Tito’s vodka, Macallan whiskey, and Jackson Family Wines.


'No Abandonment' Of Joining The WTO Tuesday 20th August, 2019 – Tribune 242

The government was yesterday said to have told private sector executives

it has “not abandoned the policy of acceding” to full membership in the

World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Darron Pickstock, who heads the Chamber of Commerce’s trade and

investment division, told Tribune Business that Elsworth Johnson, the newly-

appointed minister with responsibility for overseeing the WTO accession

process, had informed the businesses community that the government

had temporarily paused to “assess where we are”.

He added that the minister of financial services, trade and industry and

Immigration had also confirmed recently to chamber executives that the

government was planning to “ramp up” WTO-related education efforts

targeted at both the private sector and wider society.

Mr Johnson last month confirmed that the June 2020 accession target for

The Bahamas was “purely aspirational”, and not set in stone, and Mr

Pickstock yesterday agreed that it would have been “a Herculean task”

to meet that timeline given the amount of outstanding preparation work

this nation needs to complete.

However, he suggested that The Bahamas should set a new date for

concluding the process as leaving it “open ended” threatened a loss of

momentum on reforms that were critical to improving this nation’s

economic competitiveness regardless of whether it became a full WTO

member or not.

Mr Pickstock, indicating that the private sector had received some of the

WTO direction it had been seeking, disclosed: “The chamber did meet,

along with its executives, with the minister and he reiterated that the

government had not abandoned their policy of acceding to the WTO.

They are just assessing where we are to decide the way forward.

“He did confirm there’s no abandonment and, while they’re going to be

moving ahead, they’re looking to ramp up and do more consultation and

public education as to what this means for The Bahamas. There have

been a lot of cries from various pockets of society that they don’t know

what WTO’s about, and what it means for them.

“My take from the meeting is that there focus is going to be on education,

but they have not abandoned the policy to accede to the WTO.

Education is important, and I know the previous minister was putting

together a plan to do some education on what WTO is about.”

Describing the meeting and its contents as “refreshing”, Mr Pickstock

added that the chamber would seek to work with the government on its

proposed educational initiatives. He also encouraged Bahamians and

individual businesses to equip themselves with knowledge of the WTO and

the rules-based trading regimes it oversees.

Brent Symonette, Mr Johnson’s ministerial predecessor, told this

newspaper in late 2017 that the Minnis administration had taken a policy

decision to complete The Bahamas’ now-18 year bid to become a full

WTO member, and was seeking to complete the negotiation process by

December 2019.

This would have allowed the country’s accession to be ratified at the next

full WTO meeting in June 2020, but Mr Johnson previously told this

newspaper that such a timeline may now be impossible to hit.

He indicated that The Bahamas would proceed with the accession

process at a “pace” best suited to this country’s needs, but his comments

to the Chamber are the first unambiguous confirmation that there has

been no policy reversal by the Minnis administration.

Mr Pickstock yesterday conceded that hitting the June 2020 date would

be “a Herculean task” given the amount of legal and regulatory reforms,

procedural changes, and public and private education that remain

outstanding to prepare The Bahamas for the impact of full WTO

membership.

“There’s a lot of work to be done, and they would have to keep coming

back to the business community with offers and responses to offers, and

then go back to the WTO and put out our position,” Mr Pickstock added.

The Bahamas still has to implement numerous legislative reforms, such as

overhauling its intellectual property rights regime, plus enacting

competition legislation and creating a watchdog to oversee this.

Other changes require perfecting a “rules of origin” regime; implementing

sanitary and phytosanitary measures; and creating a National Investment

Act to translate existing policy into statute. WTO member states are still

reviewing this nation’s legislative and investment regime, and seeking

clarification on how they work, before The Bahamas began full

negotiations with them.

And, besides its domestic agenda, The Bahamas also has to negotiate

which import tariff rates it will lower - and by how much - and which

industries will be opened to foreign competition with the WTO working

party overseeing talks on its accession.

The Working Party consists of member states who have an interest in

trading with The Bahamas. These include the likes of the US, Canada, the

European Union (EU), China, the UK, members of CARICOM and, possibly,

Latin American nations such as Brazil.

Yet while June 2020 may not be a hard date for completing The

Bahamas’ accession, Mr Pickstock warned against leaving an “open

ended” process that has left many other nations wondering whether this

nation is truly serious about completing an 18-year negotiation.

“I think it’s always good to strive towards something as opposed to leaving

it open-ended,” he told Tribune Business. “I don’t have an issue with

striving towards a date. If you need to adjust, fine.

“I think that once you are committed to a date that sometimes dictates

the pace at which you move. That would be my reasoning for sticking to

a date so we can work towards what needs to be done.”

Mr Pickstock also confirmed that Mr Johnson had reassured Chamber

members that the Government will continue to push forward with reform

efforts to improve the ease, and lower the cost, of doing business in The

Bahamas regardless of whether this nation became a full WTO member.

“From the Chamber’s standpoint we support and encourage the push to

make the reforms the country needs,” he told Tribune Business. “That

becomes so very much important when we’re looking to improve the

economy.

“We’ve heard it time and time again; people speaking to the ease of

doing business and indicating it’s not easy to do business. Admittedly the

Government has made some improvements, but there is much more to

be done with regard to the ease of doing business.”


Sky Employees 'Must Do What They Have to Do' Tuesday 20th August, 2019 – Tribune 242

Sky Bahamas’ principal yesterday said the airline’s staff “have to do what

they have to do”, with its near-two month grounding pushing him towards

legal action against industry regulator.

Captain Randy Butler told Tribune Business he would seek to bring “some

relief” to staff who have been unpaid since July 15, after a group of

employees were said to have filed a trade dispute with the Department of

Labour seeking what Sky Bahamas owes to them.

Confirming that the debt is owed, Captain Butler said he was simply

unable to pay staff salaries or any other regular operating expenses due

to the Bahamas Civil Aviation Authority (BCAA) ordering that Sky Bahamas

cease commercial flights from July 8 due to issues over its Air Operator

Certificate (AOC).

“The fact is I haven’t paid them and I have to pay them,” he told Tribune

Business. “The fact is that pay day came on July 15 and we were

grounded on July 8. That basically stopped our operation and dried up

the funding we had.

“We had to finance alternative flights for people who were booked to

travel with us, we had to deal with charter companies, and I had to use

my personal credit card to keep the business going at that time. That was

important, because if we kept going I could pay the people.

“The staff have been a really good group of people, and most of them I’d

like to continue to work with, but these people have to do what they have

to do and I hope to get some relief to them before anything else comes

up.”

Sky Bahamas’ travails could likely not have occurred at a worse time for

many of the 63 staff employed when it was grounded due to the rapid

approach of Back-to-School expenses. Tribune Business sources revealed

several employees have attempted to access their pension fund monies -

so far without success.

Captain Butler, meanwhile, told Tribune Business he still had “access to my

office” despite the posting of a notice over the weekend that said Sky

Bahamas had been evicted by its landlord and directed all inquiries to

two Glinton, Sweeting & O’Brien attorneys, Roy Sweeting and Giahna

Soles-Hunt.

“Effective Saturday, August 17, 2019, the previous tenant of these

premises, Sky Bahamas Airlines, has been evicted and the premises have

been secured and reoccupied by the owner, AOG Maintenance

Company. The contents of the premises are presently destrained for rent,”

the notice said.

“Access to, and entry upon these premises for any reason by any person is

forbidden save with the express permission of AOG Maintenance

Company...... Trespassers will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the

law.” However, Captain Butler said yesterday: “That didn’t stop me.”

Although hopes that Sky Bahamas can be revived appear to be fading,

its principal told this newspaper that he is “not going to lie down” even

though the airline appears some way from obtaining a renewed AOC -

the permit that allows it to carry fare-paying passengers.

Captain Charles Beneby, the Bahamas Civil Aviation Authority’s director-

general, in an August 9 letter to Sky Bahamas’ attorneys said there were

“two unresolved findings” stemming from the regulator’s August 1

inspection of the airline’s facilities to ensure it had addressed all

outstanding “safety concerns”.

He explained that the Authority was “not satisfied” that the person

nominated as Sky Bahamas’ safety officer had shown the necessary

qualifications to meet the responsibilities demanded by that post, and

that it would not approve them.

“I wish to stress that the Authority cannot issue an Air Operator Certificate

until your client until its nominee for the safety management position has

been approved by the Authority,” Captain Beneby wrote to Tamica

Colebrook at Bowe Partners & Associates.

Captain Butler disputed the Authority’s assertions that his nominee was

unqualified, but in an August 14, 2019, letter seems to have put himself

forward as the safety manager. This drew a sharp response from Captain

Beneby two days’ later, who said the Sky Bahamas principal could not

hold this position while being the airline’s accountable manager at the

same time.

“I might add that Captain Butler would be well aware of that,” he said

sharply. The other Authority concern, detailed in its August 9 letter,

centred around the fact that Sky Bahamas’ operations manual was “not

in full compliance to satisfactorily address the Authority’s findings”.

Captain Butler told Tribune Business that the Authority has yet to specify

what the deficiencies are, although it said it was prepared to issue the

AOC provided the weaknesses were addressed within 30 days.

Captain Beneby, though, said the regulator had also received a Supreme

Court order, dated July 23, where Justice Diane Stewart required Sky

Bahamas to “cease all operations at the Lynden Pindling International

Airport (LPIA) and vacate property leased to it” by the Nassau Airport

Development Company (NAD) within 14 days.

That relates to the dispute between Sky Bahamas and NAD over a six-

figure sum in passenger facility user fees and security fees allegedly owed

to the latter by the airline. However, Tribune Business has seen a

subsequent August 8 letter, written by Tara Archer-Glasgow of Higgs &

Johnson on NAD’s behalf, which gives Sky Bahamas 90 days to vacate by

November 6.

Still, Captain Beneby told Sky Bahamas’ attorneys’ one day later that the

NAD dispute meant he had to ask Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism

and aviation, about “the current state of your client’s air transport licence

prior to issuance of an AOC to your client”.

That licence is issued by a different body, the Air Transport Advisory Board,

which warned Sky Bahamas on June 13, 2019, that “there can be no

guarantee of an expeditious and/or favourable consideration” of the

airline’s licence renewal after Captain Butler declined to brief it “on

matters relative to your current operations”.

Accusing the Bahamas Civil Aviation Authority of “moving the goal posts”,

Captain Butler yesterday said it was “pushing me and pulling me to go to

court” over the AOC issue. “That’s the only way to get relief, and we have

sufficient evidence to show bias and the level of political interference,” he

added.

Such claims have already been rejected by Captain Beneby.


LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS PROJECT BILL WILL CREATE BELIZE NATIONAL

GAS COMPANY Wednesday 21st August, 2019 – Amandala

An important piece of legislation that made its way through the House of

Representatives today was the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Project Bill, which

will give legal status to the Belize National Gas Company that government

is banking on to bring about a reduction in the price consumers pay for

LPG (butane gas).

Presently, Belizeans get their supply of butane gas from a group of

Mexican companies which have control of that particular market.

The Belize National Gas Company will be a public/private company

which will initially be licensed for 15 years to provide butane to consumers.

This initiative, however, is not without criticism from the Opposition

People’s United Party. The PUP’s National Deputy Leader, Hon. Cordel

Hyde, Lake Independence area representative, characterized the Belize

National Gas Company as “a monopoly.”

Hon. Hyde told the House, “I think essentially, what they are doing with this

bill is establishing a monopoly, and as captive a market as there is, eighty-

three percent of all households use butane. It’s as essential as water, as

toilet paper, as pack bread. I see there is some guarantee of a rate of

return to the investors.

“I would have wanted to see a guarantee in terms of a commitment to

the people that the cost of butane would be less. I don’t see that in this.”

Prime Minister Barrow told the House that the principals of the company

are made up of “a stellar roster of PUPs who have chartered this project

and who have come to us for support.”

“I don’t know about a UDP, so I think you need to be careful in terms of

how you try to throw stones. You talk about it being a monopoly; it will

have the monopoly in terms of the importation, but how is that not better

than the current situation where there is an oligopoly and where basically,

it is one Mexican common denominator that owns all the principal

retailers or certainly, the wholesalers,” PM Barrow countered.

“This will ensure that it is a Belizean concern, a public/private company

that will have the exclusivity in terms of the importation. We, the

government, whichever government, will be on board to ensure that in

fact, it is brought in, in a way that we will see what is happening to us,”

Prime Minister Barrow went on to say.

“So this, if it does nothing else, takes us out of that stranglehold that these

foreigners have on not just government, but on the people of this

country,” he noted.

“And absolutely, with this National Gas Company, you will see a lowering

of prices to the consumer. If you want to get political, it is controlled by

principals, huge personalities of the People’s United Party. We have

looked well past color because we think it is in the national interest, in the

interest of the consumers,” PM Barrow said.

The Belize National Gas Company will be made up of five directors and

alternate directors. Those whose names have been mentioned are

Financial Secretary, Joseph Waight; Gilbert Canton; Brad Freking; Marion

Usher and Michael Bowen.


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