War in Ukraine disrupts key supply chains

AP The Interpipe Steel plant in Dnipro, Ukraine, on March 10, 2022. 1 2 It can be hard to measure the ways that Russia’s war in Ukraine has disrupted the global supply of parts and raw materials needed to complete a variety of products – from cars to computer chips. But cutting off one of […]

Wigton buys stake in electric car dealer

Citing a need to diversify, renewable energy company Wigton Windfarm Limited is entering the electric vehicle market via acquisition of a stake in an entity called Flash Holdings Limited. Wigton’s 21 per cent stake in Flash, a holding company registered in St Lucia, will give it an equivalent share in its wholly owned subsidiary Flash […]

E-payment market doubles

THE e-payment market more than doubled over the last two years, according to data from the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ). Data obtained from the central bank show e-payment transactions in 2021 were valued at $26.89 billion.   That was up 129 per cent over the $11.69 billion which were made by e-cards or e-payment methods […]

How is the minimum wage determined?

FOLLOWING several appeals from trade unionists, minimum wage earners will receive an additional $2,000 every 40-hour work week beginning April 1, 2022. The new $9,000 weekly price floor is a legal minimum payment set by the Government, of which employers can exceed but legally they should not fall below. The 28.57 per cent increase in […]

Inflation at 11-year high

CONSUMER prices rose at its fastest pace in more than 11 years over the 12 months to the end of February, prompting added fears that the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) will continue to raise interest rates and add new tools to fight runaway price increases. Data released by the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (Statin) on […]

Oil prices plunge

[fusion_builder_container type=”flex” hundred_percent=”no” equal_height_columns=”no” menu_anchor=”” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” class=”” id=”” background_color=”” background_image=”” background_position=”center center” background_repeat=”no-repeat” fade=”no” background_parallax=”none” parallax_speed=”0.3″ video_mp4=”” video_webm=”” video_ogv=”” video_url=”” video_aspect_ratio=”16:9″ video_loop=”yes” video_mute=”yes” overlay_color=”” video_preview_image=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” padding_top=”” padding_bottom=”” padding_left=”” padding_right=””][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ layout=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” border_position=”all” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding_top=”” padding_right=”” padding_bottom=”” padding_left=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”small-visibility,medium-visibility,large-visibility” center_content=”no” […]

Guardian still hurting

LOSSES racked up by Trinidad-based insurer Guardian Holdings, Bermudan reinsurance subsidiary, in the third quarter of last year dragged down profit growth in the group for all 2021. Guardian Holdings reports the impact was seen in its full year profit growing by just one per cent. In its recently released audited report for the year […]

J$ vulnerable to global factors

A discussion paper released in January 2022 by Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) is contending that the Jamaican dollar depreciates when there is heightened risk perception in the world even more than other factors. The paper, entitled “Identifying the External and Internal Drivers of Exchange Rate Volatility in Small Open Economies: Evidence from Jamaica,” written by […]

Paymaster rebounds

AYMASTER, the island’s first bill payment company, is now seeking to beat back competition by adding value through its digital channel. The company told the Jamaica Observer that with upgrades, usage of its services is once again on the upswing. It is also considering entering other markets with its brick and mortar presence. Meanwhile, its […]

Ukraine to get IMF/World Bank funds as early as this week

The Washington DC-based financial institutions gave the signal in a joint release late Tuesday with the IMF saying it could approve Ukraine’s request for financial help through its Rapid Financing Instrument “as early as next week.” The Ukraine made the emergency financing request late last week in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of its territory. […]