Sands: Poor sacrificed ‘on tax efficiency altar’
The FNM’s chairman yesterday accused the Government of driving more Bahamian families into poverty, and sacrificing them “on the altar of tax efficiency”, by refusing to eliminate VAT on medicines and breadbasket foods.
Governor raises reserves forecast as $3bn beaten
The Central Bank yesterday raised its year-end forecast for The Bahamas’ external reserves holdings after they started May above $3bn following a $523m expansion during the first three months of 2022.
Debt consolidation still leads consumer lending
Almost one-quarter of consumer loan requests received by Bahamian commercial banks during the 2021 second half were for “debt consolidation”, it was revealed yesterday, again exposing the elevated strain COVID placed on borrowers.
$700m optimism Bahamas can ‘take oil price pressure’
A “$700m-plus” increase in US dollar purchases from the commercial banks during the 2022 first quarter has given the Central Bank’s governor optimism The Bahamas “can absorb” much of the pressure from high global prices.
Governor warns economy ‘overpowered’ after 2023
The Central Bank’s governor yesterday warned that surging global inflation and other external risks “could overpower” the Bahamian economy once the return to pre-COVID output levels is completed in 2023.
Planning Appeals Board will be ‘no rubber stamp’
A Cabinet minister yesterday pledged that the newly-appointed planning appeals Board will not serve as “a rubber stamp” for any government or Town Planning Committee decisions.
Bahamian content creators losing out over ‘thousands’
A Bahamian content creator said the sector is missing out on “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in revenue due to difficulties in obtaining payment from abroad, and hopes digital assets will provide a much-needed cure.
Cybercrime beats clients as greatest fraud threat
Cybercrime now poses a greater threat to global businesses than customer fraud, a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) survey has revealed, with hacking incidents rising in line with the digital economy’s accelerated growth due to COVID-19.
Bank wipes out $30m loss in three months
A BISX-listed bank says its best first quarter for a decade has more than wiped out the near-$30m full-year loss it suffered for 2021, which was sparked by a 41.4 percent jump in bad loan impairments driven by COVID-19 fall-out.
‘Tremendous ignorance’ on VAT breadbasket row
The Coalition for Responsible Taxation’s (CRT) head has slammed “the tremendous amount of ignorance” shown by Bahamian politicians from all sides in the continued debate about eliminating VAT on so-called ‘breadbasket’ items.
‘No time to celebrate’ on better fiscal signs
While the better-than-expected fiscal performance gives the Davis administration “something to hang their hat on” heading into the upcoming 2022-2023 Budget, it was yesterday warned: “It’s not time to celebrate yet.”
Hope and Fear
ActivTrades
THE recovery on the European financial markets continued vigorously in the second half of last week. Good corporate balance sheets and low prices beat fears of war and the return of COVID lockdowns.
Atlantis launches seaplane tie-up with Kamalame Cay
Atlantis has moved to better enable its guests to “experience the sheer beauty of the Family Islands” with this week’s launch of its partnership with Coco Bahama Seaplanes and Kamalame Cay.
Closing the circle: Getting to the root causes of crime
In recent news headlines, we have seen more than 20 young men being murdered on New Providence in March.
Digital assets ‘shot in the arm’ sparks accountants to reunite
The Bahamas’ entry into the digital assets space sparked two well-known accountants to speed up their reunion after a decade apart by merging their two firms with effect from yesterday.
