NEWS
TT hits 300 covid19 cases
The Ministry of Health said five more people have tested positive for covid19 in its update at 6 pm on Tuesday. That brings the total number of covid19 cases to 300. Four of the five cases were contacts of recently positive covid19 cases while the fifth was currently the subject of an epidemiological investigation. The five additional cases brought the number of active covid19 cases in TT to 153. Read more here
Doctor fears spike in cases following election
As the country hit 300 cases of COVID-19 yesterday, activities in the days leading up to the recent general elections are being described as a “disaster waiting to happen” by internal medicine specialist Dr Joel Teelucksingh who said those who failed to follow proper public health protocols could have created a “petri dish of infections.” Read more here
POLITICS
Smaller parties wonder: Do people really want change?
Some of the smaller parties contesting the 2020 general election said they were not surprised by the handful of votes they received, but were disappointed that the population’s talk of wanting change was just talk. Nikoli Edwards, the Progressive Party’s leader and candidate for San Fernando West, questioned how real and true TT’s democracy was when the electorate did not give someone outside the People’s National Movement and the United National Congress (or coalition thereof) an opportunity to be part of the government. Read more here
Latest loss puts Kamla under pressure
Opposition leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar seems likely to face yet another battle for the reins of her party following another defeat by the People’s National Movement in Monday’s General Election. The situation developed yesterday with various senior party members being divided over her future, with some calling for her resignation while others said they still trusted her stewardship. Read more here
BUSINESS
UTC records strong recovery
The Unit Trust Corporation (UTC) has made a strong recovery from its $44.5 million loss caused by the coronavirus pandemic in the first quarter of 2020, unaudited results have stated. For the three months ended June 30, the UTC posted Net Income of $73 million and overall Net Income of $28 million over the first six months of the year after seeing declines related to the market turmoil in the first quarter. Assets Under Management rose to $22.90 billion in the second quarter 2020 compared with $22.60 billion in the same period a year ago. The UTC attributed its second-quarter gains to proactive, research-driven investment strategies. Read more here
Restaurants face collapse if T&T locks down again
Trinidad’s restaurant industry has taken a severe hit due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and will not be able to survive another lockdown. Read more here
REGIONAL
Cash-strapped GFC requests $581M bailout
A ONCE flourishing agency and major revenue earner for Guyana, the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), is at its wits end, and has been forced to request a bailout from government in order to stay afloat. The Commission, which is responsible for the administration and management of all state-owned forest land, had descended into a state of bankruptcy over the past five years, despite having a surplus of more than $4 billion at the end of 2015. “Forestry is in a mess; staff are not paid. They owe GPL over $70M, and they also have outstanding sums for NIS and GRA,” said Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat during an exclusive interview with the Guyana Chronicle on Monday. Read more here
Holness seeks second mandate in 23-day election sprint; nomination day August 18
Andrew Holness will seek his second mandate for state power when his Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) heads to the polls on Thursday, September 3 in a 23-day sprint to beat gathering coronavirus clouds that could dampen voter turnout. Some 1,913,410 persons are on the voters’ list, up from 1,824,410 in the February 2016 election in which Holness’ JLP registered a surprise one-seat win over the People’s National Party (PNP). Tuesday’s announcement of the general election was unlike any in recent memory. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Harris pick recasts Democratic power structure for years to come
With all the glass ceilings that she's broken in her career, Kamala Harris has always resisted talk about her pioneering firsts. But when Joe Biden chose her as his running mate Tuesday, she made history again as the first Black and South Asian woman to grace a presidential ticket, and the decision sealed her place as the presumptive Democratic nominee's bridge to the next generation while also demonstrating that she is a running mate who defies easy definition. Read more here
UK officially in recession for first time in 11 years
The UK economy suffered its biggest slump on record between April and June as coronavirus lockdown measures pushed the country officially into recession. The economy shrank 20.4% compared with the first three months of the year. Household spending plunged as shops were ordered to close, while factory and construction output also fell. This pushed the UK into its first technical recession - defined as two consecutive quarters of economic decline - since 2009. Read more here
12th August 2020