Gas station hours cut forces lay-offs
Some Bahamian gas stations have been forced to temporarily lay-off workers due to their opening hours being slashed to just 1pm amid the COVID-19 lockdown. Ethan Moss, managing director of JMEL Enterprises, which operates six Rubis gas stations thro
It's a fight for survival in a world which may never be the same again
The great global lockdown has meant that a large percentage of the planet’s population has seen its way of living changing radically compared with what it was a mere hundred days ago. Many of us now spend the greatest part of our time confined at hom
Treat our fisheries as 'essential', govt told
Fisheries should be treated as an “essential service” that is open during the COVID-19 lockdown, industry players are arguing, with conch and fish catches restricted to local consumption only.Paul Mailis, director of the National Fisheries Associatio
Bank chief loses 'fit and proper' battles
A Bahamian bank’s chairman has failed to overturn the Central Bank’s demand that he sell his majority ownership because he is “not a fit and proper person” to be in charge. Carlos Molina told Tribune Business his battle with the regulator had result
Govt ‘taking from Peter to pay Paul’
The government is performing a high-wire juggling act with its finances by “robbing Peter to pay Paul” to meet critical liabilities as they become due, the deputy prime minister revealed yesterday.
Tourism has 'no choice' to devise virus safeguards
Bahamian tourism is going to “have to live with” COVID-19 and devise measures to reassure both visitors and industry employees that the sector is safe, a Cabinet minister warned yesterday. Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, told T
S&P: Bahamas to shrink by 16%
Standard & Poor’s (S&P) last night forecast that the Bahamian economy will shrink by an “unprecedented” 16 percent in 2020 as it further downgraded this nation’s sovereign creditworthiness.
Price regulator in egg shortage fear
The Price Control Commission’s (PCC) chairman yesterday said he had urged the Government to cut the duty rate on eggs by two-thirds as he warned consumers to brace for shortages within a week. Danny Sumner told Tribune Business : “Items that are pri
BPL finances ‘more perilous every day’
Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) has been unable to exploit the all-time low in global oil prices, a Cabinet minister revealed yesterday, adding: “Its finances get more and more perilous every day.”
Hotel Union clarification
Darrin Woods, the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) president, yesterday clarified that the “advance” financing the assistance being provided to its 5,500 members next week is NOT a loan which they or the union have to repay.H
Virus 'hampers' oil explorer fund listing
A Bahamas-based oil explorer says the London listing - and trading - of shares in an investment fund it promoted to local investors has “been significantly hampered and thus delayed” by COVID-19.Bahamas Petroleum Company (BPC), which has already dela
Pharmacists: No issues despite long client lines
Pharmacists say they are experiencing no problems fulfilling patient prescriptions despite the long queues and wait times following the Easter weekend lockdown. Clinton McCartney, head pharmacist at McCartney’s Pharmacy, told Tribune Business : “We
Digital economy in key rebound role
The COVID-19 pandemic’s jolt to speed-up digitisation, and the growth of online e-commerce activity, will ensure they both have a role in economic recovery, a Bahamian financial analyst believes. Brian Jones, Leno’s managing director of wealth solut
'Hurting' wedding planners allege NIB denied support
Weddings industry professionals yesterday said they are “hurting desperately” due to the COVID-19 pandemic but allege they have been denied assistance from the National Insurance Board (NIB). Cindy Coakley-Knowles, the Bahamas Bridal Association’s p
Food security needs additional 'real steps'
The Bahamas Light Industries Development Council (BLIDC) says other “real steps that need to be taken” besides creating a Food Security Task Force to help spur local production. Karla Wells-Lisgaris, the Council’s vice-president, responding to the p
