TTMA IN THE NEWS
Imbert considers VAT exemption for energy sector
Minister of Finance Colm Imbert said he is considering waiving Value Added Tax (VAT) from the energy industry to help improve the Government’s ability to pay VAT returns to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). He noted this consideration, along with others to deal with the issue of VAT returns for the business community, during his keynote speech at the TT Manufacturers Association (TTMA) post-budget discussion. It was held at the Hyatt Regency on Tuesday. Read more here
Strong words need swift action
In a situation in which business groups have different interests, the near-universal acclaim for Colm Imbert’s relatively aggressive stance on foreign-exchange supply underscores the pressing need for this issue to be addressed if businesses are to grow. Not only did the Finance Minister accede to recommendations by bodies such as the TT Chamber of Industry and Commerce (TTCIC) for new arrangements to be put in place to allow preferential access for small and medium enterprises, but, unusually when it comes to setting out government policy, Imbert also set a specific timeframe for implementation. Read more here
Bankers want more forex details from Imbert
The Banking Association of Trinidad and Tobago (BATT) said yesterday it was pleased with the commitment given by Finance Minister Colm Imbert to consult on options to address the challenges being faced by the business community and the wider public in purchasing foreign currency. In a news release yesterday, BATT said it would continue to work with Government to implement new arrangements to improve access to foreign exchange for the most affected segments of the market including small and medium-sized enterprises. “We commend initiatives to boost repatriation of foreign exchange earned overseas by local and foreign business operating domestically to increase the supply of foreign exchange, given the structural issues that contribute to the foreign exchange problems we have been facing,” the association outlined. Read more here
Trinidad manufacturers in Guyana seeking collaboration with local businesses
A total of 55 members of the Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA) are in Guyana seeking collaboration and business opportunities. President of the Association Roger Roach, speaking Wednesday at a meeting in Georgetown, vouched for the experience of Trinidad manufacturers. The meeting was organised by ActionINVEST Caribbean Inc. and enabled several local and Trinidad businesses the opportunity to meet. The Trinidad manufacturers say there are many opportunities on both ends for investments in manufacturing. In attendance at the meeting, held at Parc Rayne, were the High Commissioner of Trinidad to Guyana Conrad Enill, Mayor of Arima in Trinidad and Tobago Balliram Maharaj and Guyana’s Foreign Secretary Robert Persaud. Read more here
NEWS
Despite heroic rescue efforts: BABY GIRL DIES IN FIRE
Despite the heroic efforts of her parents, her grandfather, neighbours and a crew of T&TEC workers to rescue her, 13-month-old Harley Persad died in a fire in her Endeavour home on Wednesday morning. Harley was asleep in her crib when a fire broke out at the family’s Egypt Extension, Soogrim Trace home around midday. Her grandfather, Deosaran Persad, said her parents, Leandra and Hemant Persad, put her in her crib around 10 am after returning home from dropping her five-year-old brother, Liam, at school and visiting the supermarket. Read more here
Maraval community reeling after newborn’s body found in garbage
While most Maraval residents were preparing for work, sanitation workers made a grisly discovery when they stumbled upon the body of a newborn baby girl early yesterday morning. According to the police, Amalgamated Sanitation Services workers were collecting garbage from a bin at the corner of Saddle Road and Bowen Road at around 6 am, when they noticed the child’s hand sticking out of a black garbage bag. On checking, the workers found the baby girl’s body. Investigators said the bag also contained a placenta. The garbage bin where the child’s body was found was obliquely opposite the Maraval Police Station. Read more here
POLITICS
Kamla tells PM: Steps needed now against ruthless criminals
The Opposition Leader has called on the Government to immediately implement some practical anti-crime initiatives to stop the bloodshed and terror. A statement on Wednesday from Kamla Persad-Bissessar, SC, said while the country awaits an official response to her letter to the Prime Minister, she was “hard-pressed” to speak on behalf of “our besieged nation.” The letter she referred to was recently sent to Dr Keith Rowley, outlining anti-crime suggestions and asking for stakeholders to be included in proposed talks between the two main political parties. “Over the past couple of days, there have been multiple ghastly murders, brutal home invasions, shootings, and audacious threats from gangs to harm our courageous police officers,” the statement said. Read more here
BUSINESS
South businesses welcome Imbert’s forex pledge
Business chambers in south Trinidad are satisfied that the Minister of Finance Colm Imbert promised to make foreign exchange available to the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) sector within the next six months in his budget presentation for fiscal year 2024. On Monday, Imbert said: “I expect to be able to implement this new SME forex facility within the next six months, which should reduce the demand for sales of foreign exchange using credit cards," said Imbert, adding, "In particular, in 2024, we will create new arrangements for preferential access to foreign exchange for qualified small and medium enterprises, and in this regard, I have already received very useful recommendations from the Chamber of Commerce, the commercial banks and the EximBank.” The business community has been complaining for many years that they do not have access to enough foreign exchange to do international transactions. Read more here
Dukharan concerned over Imbert’s forex ‘gun talk’
Caribbean economist Marla Dukharan says the one thing that stood out to her more than anything else in Finance Minister Colm Imbert’s budget presentation was his announcement that the government intends to increase the repatriation of foreign exchange earned overseas by local and foreign businesses operating in Trinidad and Tobago. “This my friends, is Finance Minister ‘gun talk’. Not to be ignored or taken lightly. This Minister is finally unambiguous about his policy agenda, and for this we should be grateful. What we do with that information is now up to us,” Dukharan stated as she published her Caribbean Monthly Economic Report yesterday. Read more here
REGIONAL
President Ali: Guyana, Costa Rica discuss eco-tourism, climate change co-operation
Guyana is hoping to collaborate with Costa Rica to advance its eco-tourism industry, President Dr. Irfaan Ali announced on Tuesday. Dr. Ali recently travelled to the Central American state to receive an award from the Inter-American Institute for Agricultural Cooperation (IICA) for his leadership in Food Security. He also met with Costa Rican President, Rodrigo Chaves Robles. The two Heads of State held a press briefing, where President Ali expressed Guyana’s interest in collaborating with the country. In fact, President Ali noted that Guyana was modelling its eco-tourism industry after Costa Rica’s. “In positing Guyana as a major destination for eco-tourism, we have identified Costa Rica as our model…We are embarking on a programme to work closely with the government of Costa Rica in helping us develop our eco-tourism product in Guyana.” Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Ukraine war: US gives 1.1 million rounds of ammunition seized from Iran to Kyiv
The US has sent roughly 1.1 million bullets seized from Iran last year to Ukraine, its military has said. The US Central Command (Centcom), which oversees operations in the Middle East, says the rounds were confiscated from a ship bound for Yemen in December. Ukraine's Western allies recently warned that their production lines were struggling to keep up with the rate at which Ukraine was using ammunition. Centcom says the Iranian rounds were transferred to Ukraine on Monday. It added the ammunition was 7.62mm calibre used in Soviet-era rifles and light machine-guns. Read more here
5th October 2023