TTMA IN THE NEWS
Joint Chambers want Port of Spain port delays resolved
Four of the country’s largest business chambers have issued a collective call for the government to resolve ongoing industrial action at the Port of Port of Spain. Protests at the port escalated in August and spread to the Scarborough port in October. Some business leaders worry the protests can become untenable. In their first collective statement on the disruptions, the chambers warned that the situation “is leading to a national crisis, at a most inopportune time of the year when the volume of shipments is typically at its highest and makes it imperative that the port operates efficiently.” Read more here
Business chambers to Govt: End port chaos now!
The Joint Chambers are calling on the Government to urgently resolve the ongoing industrial action causing severe disruptions at the Port of Port-of-Spain. The American Chamber of Industry and Commerce (AMCHAM T&T), the Energy Chamber, the Trinidad and Tobago Chamber of Industry and Commerce (T&T Chamber), and the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers Association (TTMA) issued a joint statement yesterday, criticising the Government’s inaction in what they describe as a national crisis at a peak time for shipping activity. “To reiterate, the extensive delays at the port are negatively affecting port revenue; vessel bypasses; increased detention fees and haulage rates; delivery of raw materials for production; and the cost of production and of finished goods. Ultimately, the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago will be severely affected by the failure, thus far, to come to a timely resolution,” the chambers stated. Read more here
NEWS
Meteorologist: Learn about weather patterns, heed Met Office warnings
Meteorologist Gary Benjamin advised people to use available resources to learn about likely patterns, talking to Newsday on November 13, the day after massive flooding in south Trinidad. People should prepare before time, he said, using the TT Met Office's five-day forecasts and its robust suite of information. He also advised people to heed Met Office warnings about thunderstorms, even if a yellow-level alert was not issued. "We must understand the area we live in – if it is prone to flooding or landslips – and prepare for that before time. Read more here
Caricom leaders react to devastating floods in Trinidad, Grenada
Caribbean Community (Caricom) leaders have used the ongoing flooding across the region to press home their case for climate finance as the third day of COP29 closed yesterday in Baku, Azerbaijan. Several Caricom leaders, including Grenada Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell, Caricom Secretary-General Dr Carla Barnett and Dominica’s Environment Minister Cozier Frederick, all weighed in on the issue. Read more here
POLITICS
AG back on the job
Attorney General Reginald Armour, SC, is back on the job. A statement from his office on November 13 said Armour returned from private business abroad and resumed his portfolio as AG and Minister of Legal Affairs earlier that day. He had left the country on private business on November 6. Minister of Public Utilities Marvin Gonzales acted as AG and Minister of Legal Affairs in Armour’s absence. Read more here
BUSINESS
The forex crunch: US$ supply shortfall affects travel to trade
TT, like some other countries, is in a serious foreign exchange pinch, one that is affecting small and big business alike and making it hard for a country heavily dependent on imports to do business with their partners abroad. It is not a new thing – the forex crunch the country is experiencing has been emerging since around 2015 – but now, it is an undeniable strain on the nation’s ability to do business and continue with its current way of life. Recently, stiff restrictions and reductions in limits in access to US currency from the banks have made it all the more difficult, leading business people and individuals alike to turn to an unregulated market to access US cash, for imports, business and personal travel. Read more here
T&T businessman selling smart tags at Walmart
It is being increasingly said that a loss can often be a lesson. Trinidad-born entrepreneur Sheldon Scipio can attest to this, as he has turned his own frustration over losing luggage into an avenue for revenue, securing a deal with American chain Walmart, whose revenue for its fiscal year ending January 31, 2024 was US$648 billion. “I worked a number of jobs. At TSTT, I was in charge of Blackberry. I was a prison officer before that. I’ve worked with national teams as a physiotherapist, so I’ve done a lot of travelling, and I’ve lost some things during travelling,” Scipio told the Business Guardian in a Zoom interview. Read more here
REGIONAL
‘Work with our laws’- Natural Resource Minister says
Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat, reaffirmed the critical need for “full compliance” with Guyana’s Local Content Act (LCA), which is set to be amended soon. The Minister made this call while delivering remarks at the Jaguar floating production storage and offloading vessel (FPSO) steel strike, on Tuesday, at the Guyana Shore Base Incorporated (GYSBI), Houston, East Bank Demerara. While celebrating the successes of Guyanese companies in the rapidly expanding oil and gas sector, Minister Bharrat highlighted that stricter enforcement may be necessary to ensure all industry players align with the Act’s mandates, designed to prioritise local businesses and workforce participation. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
'Nowhere is safe': Concerns grow as Israel strikes new areas of Lebanon
The rescue workers had just left when we arrived at the scene of an Israeli air strike on a building in Aramoun, south-west of Lebanon’s capital Beirut. It was supposed to have been cleared. They had found eight bodies - including three children and three women - and taken the many injured to hospitals; some were in a critical condition. Then several men on a balcony in a building opposite started shouting: “A hand, a hand. We can see a hand.” Read more here
14th November 2024