‘Laying the staff off worst day of my life’
A major Bahamian hardware retailer's principal yesterday said it was "the worst decision I've had to make in my life" to temporarily lay-off nearly 70 staff in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘Lockdown directive left us in chaos'
Super Value's principal yesterday said inadequate warning of the weekend lockdown caused late Friday "chaos" at food stores with police officers even threatening to shoot unless persons went home.
$700m needed to support up to 100,000 jobless
The government needs to borrow $700m from the domestic banking system to support household incomes given that the jobless total may reach six-figures, a Bahamian banker warned yesterday.Julian Brown, pictured, president and chief executive of BISX-li
Bahamas needs 'asue mentality' for its recovery
The Bahamas must “pool resources like never before” if it is to successfully jump-start the economy once COVID-19 has passed, a banker urge yesterday, adding: “We need that asue mentality.”Gowon Bowe, pictured, Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) chief financial
COVID-19 to 'absolutely' cause business closures
A Chamber of Commerce director has warned there will “absolutely” be permanent business closures across the Bahamian economy once it emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic. Tara Morley, who is also the Bahamas Federation of Retailers (BFR) co-president,
Paying the price in battling COVID-19
The United Nations’ (UN) Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has predicted the the economic impact from COVID-19 is expected to be more intense that the 2008 global financial crisis. The Caribbean is expected to be impacte
ACTIVTRADES: The end of the line for cruise ships?
The fallout from the coronavirus pandemic over the global economy is threatening to trigger an unprecedented depression; the latest forecast from Goldman Sachs for the United States predicts a contraction of 34 percent in GDP on the second quarter of
Govt identifies $300m in COVID-19 funding
The government has to-date identified $300m in funding it can access should the COVID-19 pandemic force it to go outside its revised post-Dorian financing structure. K Peter Turnquest, deputy prime minister, told Tribune Business : “We have lined up
NIB: Over $500,000 to tourism self-employed
The National Insurance Board (NIB) yesterday said it has paid-out more than $500,000 in the first tranche of help for self-employed persons in the tourism sector hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. The social security system, in a statement, disclosed: “T
Broker refutes regulator's 'ponzi scheme' assertions
A former Bahamas-based broker/dealer last night accused the Securities Commission of failing to understand a business model that the regulator had branded “akin to a ‘ponzi’ scheme”.Guy Gentile, principal of SureTrader and MintBroker International, t
Price regulators back ‘no gouging’ on eggs
Consumer protection regulators have confirmed there is no “price gouging” on eggs despite complaints that costs have doubled in just two weeks.
Cable Bahamas teams for cash bill payments
Cable Bahamas has teamed with a Bahamian money transmission services provider to enable customers to pay their REV bills in cash during the COVID-19 pandemic. Barry Malcom, SunCash’s director, said: “Sun Island Transfers Ltd or SunCash is very pleas
'Govt cannot save everyone'
A Cabinet minister yesterday said he was “on his knees” hoping the cruise lines’ Grand Bahama projects pull through, as he warned: “Government cannot rescue everyone from this crisis.” Dionisio D’Aguilar, pictured , minister of tourism and aviation,
New auto sales facing '50% hit' at a minimum
New car sales will take at least “a 50 percent hit” due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a major dealer is forecasting, having already slashed his orders for the next three months by some 60 percent.Fred Albury, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association’s (BMDA
'We fell asleep' over chance of tourism freeze
The Bahamas failed to plan for the possibility of a total tourism shutdown because it was lulled “to sleep” by years of record arrivals and earnings, a former finance minister said yesterday.James Smith, also a former Central Bank governor, told Trib
