News

Trinidad bank is sold for US$2.2 billion - Local Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago (RBTT has been sold to the Royal Bank of Canada. The deal was sealed on Wednesday even as a large group of shareholders with smaller shareholdingss voted against the sale of the bank.  More >

Investor buys Guyana forest's rain and carbon - The move is a novel twist in an investor frenzy to make money from the prospect of climate change that has also seen businesses snap up permits to emit greenhouse gases and invest in low carbon-emitting technologies.  More >

Bahamas plans to sell $100 million of bonds - The securities may price to yield 275 basis points more than US Treasuries of similar maturity, said the person, who declined to be identified because terms aren't set.  More >

Telecommunications regulatory body for Montserrat - Chief Minister Dr Lowell Lewis announced during his 2008 budget presentation on Tuesday evening that a new Telecommunications Bill has been drafted and will be presented to the legislative council in the coming months.  More >

Grenada makes deal with Irish company to develop marina village - The Grenada government has signed a multi-million dollar investment agreement with an Irish-owned company that will see a marina village established on the island's south coast  More >

Minister wants single air space - St Lucia's Tourism and Civil Aviation Minister Allen Chastanet wants regional leaders to revisit the issue of designating the Caribbean a single air space, when they meet in July.  More >

Valero plans to sell Aruba refinery in second quarter - Valero Energy Corp., the largest US refiner, plans to sell its Aruba refinery in the second quarter to focus on improvements to plants that can process cheaper oil.  More >

Obama's release of tax returns could turn spotlight on Clinton's Cayman Islands investments - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama put rival Hillary Clinton on the spot by releasing his full tax returns and challenging her to do the same. This could focus attention on her husband's financial interest in three investment entities register  More >

US company in internet plan to help boost Dominica tourism - A United States company that recently opened operations in the Caribbean has announced a plan to use internet technology to help boost tourism in Dominica.  More >

RBC gets RBTT shareholder approval for buyout - Majority shareholders of the Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago (RBTT) have bought into the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) takeover of the twin-island republic's largest commercial bank.  More >

Nevis premier calls for fair treatment for hotel workers - Premier of Nevis and Minister of Tourism Joseph Parry told employees of the Four Seasons Resort that the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) under his leadership stood for hard work, honesty and decency. The Premier made the statement last week, while he de  More >

Fuel price increases take effect in Belize - A tanker of fuel that arrived in Belize last week reflects sharp increases in the acquisition cost of gasoline, kerosene and diesel.  More >

Shares in Cable and Wireless Grenada go on sale - The Grenada government has launched the sale of the majority of its shares in telecommunications giant, Cable and Wireless, offering them at a lower price than originally announced.  More >

A record year for tourism in Jamaica - Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett has reported that 2007 was a record year for Jamaica's tourism industry, with close to three million visitors to the island, generating more than US$1.9 billion in revenues.  More >

Energy company enters Caribbean market - Encore Energy Systems, a United States-based company which provides alternative energy sources and technology has announced plans to expand into the Caribbean market to help the region better deal with the impact of rising world oil prices.  More >

Cruise line moves large ships out of the Caribbean - Princess Cruises, one of the world's largest cruise lines will pull two of its largest ships from the Caribbean next year to take advantage of a boom in the United Kingdom (UK) cruise market.  More >

Caribbean Airlines increasing flights this summer - Caribbean Airlines has announced a further expansion of its service to New York from this summer in response to what it said was increased demand for its service.  More >

Caribbean Buffeted by Global Price Spikes - As the single parent of a five-year-old boy, Sonita Balkaran can barely make ends meet these days. A clothing vendor in one of this city's five municipal markets, Balkarran has watched in horror the steady decline of her living standard, estimating that h  More >

Business culture in Guyana must change, says official - There is a need for a change in the business culture that currently exists in Guyana to ensure an environment is created where there is more information sharing among businesses.  More >

BVI premier assures financial services sector is well regulated - ROAD TOWN, BVI: Premier and Minister for Finance in the British Virgin Islands, Ralph O’Neal has given an assurance that the government will continue to ensure that the financial services sector in the territory is well regulated.  More >

Dominican Republic allows ethanol-gasoline mix for first time - Dominican Republic (Bloomberg): Dominican Republic gasoline stations were given the go-ahead by the government to sell gas mixed with ethanol for the first time, a step the government said will cut the country's fuel bill by at least 30 percent.  More >

Business continuity planning workshops to be held in St Lucia - For nearly ten years the National Emergency Management Organization (NEMO) in St Lucia has collaborated with many agencies in the area of Business Plannining for Disasters commonly reffered to as Business Continuity Planning.  More >

Caribbean Development Bank to co-host investor roundtable - Against the backdrop of one the most turbulent periods in financial markets in years, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) will host an investor roundtable in collaboration with the business publication Institutional Investor on the theme “Global Imbalanc  More >

Telecoms Growth dynamic - Telecommunications has become one of the Caribbean's major growth industries, according to a new report.  More >

ECSRC emphasises investment licensing requirements - BASSETERRE, St Kitts: The Eastern Caribbean Securities Regulatory Commission has issued a notice advising that all persons soliciting or conducting securities business or providing investment advice in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union must be licensed  More >

Panamanian airline launches service to Trinidad - PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad: Another airline has joined the list of air carriers serving Trinidad and Tobago.  More >

Caribbean tourism: a new era or more of the same? - Despite the serious challenges facing the Caribbean's tourism industry, from new passport regulations to a slowdown in the United States economy, the Caribbean region can be cautiously optimistic about its future as leaders begin to pay greater attention  More >

Jamaica looking at expanding missions to encourage investment - KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS): The Jamaican government is taking a comprehensive look at its diplomatic missions across the world, in order to penetrate new markets abroad so as to increase exports and to bring investors from those countries to establish and ex  More >

EC earmarks additional Euro11 million to assist Caribbean - KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS): Head of the European Commission (EC) Delegation in Jamaica, Carlo Pettinato has announced that Euro11million has been earmarked for the “next cycle of cooperation” with Jamaica and the wider Caribbean, beginning later this year.  More >

Over 20,000 cruise ship passengers visit St Kitts this week - BASSETERRE, St Kitts (CUOPM): Over 17,500 cruise ship passengers visited St Kitts for the first five days of this week, with over 2,000 more expected on Friday, the St Christopher and Nevis Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA) is reporting.Statistician  More >

Inaccessible funding - Those I spoke with noted that EC funding for the private sector is virtually inaccessible.The European Development Fund has bureaucratic processes worse than any in the Caribbean, and its support seemed largely to exist to fund European consultants.  More >