02242022 BUSINESS

business@tribunemedia.net

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2022

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Inflation drives 5% price rise at high-end project • Aqualina eyes three more rises before completion • Developer: 60% of units sold; 40 workers on-site • Bahamas boosted by costs 30% below Florida

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN developer yesterday disclosed he has increased prices on the multimillion dollar units in his latest project by 5 percent in response to soaring construction materials costs.

Jason Kinsale, Aristo Development’s principal, told Tribune Business that not even high-end real estate is immune from surging global inflation as he predicted that

JASON KINSALE

his 11-storey Aqualina development will likely implement “three more price increases of 5 percent” before construction is completed by December 2023.

But, with 40 construction workers already on-site and work having reached to the first floor, he said the Cable Beach-based development is benefiting from favourable market forces as 60 percent of the 28 units have already been sold.

SEE PAGE SEVEN

THE BAHAMAS Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) 2021 full-year revenues were $17.4m below pre-COVID levels despite representing a 4.9 percent year-over-year gain on 2020.

The Bahamian carrier’s ultimate parent, in 2021 full-year

and fourth quarter results released yesterday, disclosed that BTC’s top-line income remained 8.4 percent below 2019’s pre-pandemic $207.3m, standing at $189.9m.

The latter, though, represented a more-than $8m improvement on the $181.1m in revenue that BTC generated in 2020. That increase will likely have been driven by the easing of COVID-19 lockdowns and border restrictions,

BAHAMIAN small businesses were yesterday said to be bracing for up to a 25 percent drop-off in consumer demand compared to pre-COVID levels as inflation chips away at buying power.

Mark A Turnquest, a consultant who works with numerous micro, small and medium-sized companies (MSMEs), told Tribune Business that “the chickens have come home to roost” with The Bahamas unable to combat surging imported inflation that is driven by factors outside its control.

And, with the possibility of conflict between Russia

MARK A TURNQUEST and the Ukraine looming ever larger, he warned that rising energy costs driven by spiking global oil prices will “have a trickle down effect” that is felt by all Bahamian households and businesses.

“We’re hoping there is only a 15-25 percent reduction in consumer spending compared to 2019,” Mr

SEE PAGE NINE

Bahamas at ‘critical point’ in gaining COVID balance

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas has reached “a critical juncture” in its battle against COVID19 where it must balance saving lives and preserving livelihoods, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is warning.

The multilateral lender made the assertion in unveiling a pilot initiative designed to ready “500 self-employed and displaced workers” from the industries hardest hit by the pandemic for the demands of the digital economy.

The IDB, in a paper seen by Tribune Business, said it is partnering on the

training with a foundation that has spent the past six years teaching digital skills in multiple Caribbean countries with more than 90 percent of graduates placed in the private sector.

“The Bahamas is now at a critical juncture where saving lives due to the health consequences of COVID-19 must also be balanced with saving livelihoods directly affected by the economic impact of the crisis,” the IDB asserted.

“The disruption in commercial and business activities across sectors such as tourism, financial services and retail and services has caused many companies to re-think the way they do

SEE PAGE EIGHT

KENRICK BRATHWAITE

Switching banks like ‘giving birth’

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

AQUALINA CONCEPT

and the economy’s gradual reopening, which will have aided increased tourist roaming revenues as well as Bahamian communications activity.

Liberty Latin America (LiLAC) does not publish details on BTC’s profitability, or that of any of its subsidiaries, which makes it hard to evaluate the Bahamian company’s overall financial performance. However, BTC, which saw its long-lived assets

decline by 5.6 percent yearover-year, from $342.4m to $323.9m at end-2021, recently paid out $50m to its shareholders.

This was revealed in the Government’s recent update for the first six months of its 2021-2022 fiscal year, which confirmed that the Public Treasury received

SEE PAGE EIGHT

Small businesses brace for 25% consumer spend drop

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

GOWON BOWE

• Fidelity chief calls for KYC process easing • Rejects calls for price control on bank fees • Demand made by ‘uninformed politicians’

BTC revenues $17.4m off pre-COVID levels

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

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THE Bahamas must make it easier for customers to switch banks and thereby boost competition, a senior banker agreed yesterday, as he likened the current process to “giving birth”.

Gowon Bowe, Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) chief executive, told Tribune Business that transferring accounts to another financial institution will be made much easier if it became accepted industry practice that a Know Your Customer (KYC) all-clear provided by one bank was accepted at all others so the process does not have to be repeated.

This would reduce the bureaucracy and red tape, not to mention time, associated with switching a company or individual’s financial services business to another institution, making the transfer more seamless and efficient. And if customers are able to more easily move, it will force the banks to be more competitive in the products and services they offer, not to mention fees, to hold on to them.

Mr Bowe, speaking after the Central Bank yesterday unveiled its first ever industrywide comparison of bank fee scales, said the

SEE PAGE SIX

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 3

‘MISSED GENERATIONS’ NOW THREATEN FARMING

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas has “missed generations of farmers” by failing to attract young entrepreneurs to agriculture, a Cabinet minister said yesterday, warning that this threatens the sector’s sustainability.

Clay Sweeting, minister of agriculture, marine resources and Family Island affairs, told the Food for Future Summit & Expo that most Bahamian farmers are now aged over 60 yearsold and nearing retirement age with too fewer younger persons ready to step up and take over the roles for themselves.

“We see the need to empower our youth and women to help sustain our food systems and increase

productivity among our people. This is because most of our farmers are over the age of 60 years, which threatens the sustainability of our agriculture industry,” Mr Sweeting said.

“We have essentially missed generations of farmers. Therefore we must work diligently to encourage farming to strengthen our food systems.” These concerns, he added, further fed into The Bahamas’ anxiety about improving the country’s food security given the challenges experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic that are still continuing today.

“In The Bahamas, the alarms for food security are ringing,” Mr Sweeting said. “I note that the UAE (United Arab Emirates) and The Bahamas share

similar challenges in that The Bahamas currently imports nearly 90 percent of our food, while the UAE imports about the same percentage.

“The price tag for imported food is pegged at $1bn – a disproportionate bill that we cannot continue to pay. We must make a paradigm shift as we endeavour to revolutionise agriculture and aquaculture in our country.

“In this regard, The Bahamas is looking for innovative ways to achieve food security. We are eager to learn about new, vibrant and sustainable ways to grow our food and, in the long run, to be able to feed ourselves for many generations to come.”

The Bahamas’ exposure to the annual threat of major hurricanes, and

vulnerability to climate change, meant achieving food security was a greater challenge than for many other nations, Mr Sweeting said.

“We must be able to not only farm but use technologies to protect what we are able to grow. It is fundamental that we increase our resiliency with global partners who share in our concern and passion for food security and stability,” the minister told the Dubaibased conference.

“Food security is high on the agenda for The Bahamas, and we must be progressive in our pursuit of it. In this global pandemic, we cannot ignore that food prices have increased dramatically and that, worldwide, shipping and logistics are becoming a challenge.

“With this sharp increase, we not only need to build resilience in our food production, but also find ways to export what we produce to increase our revenue.

Rising food prices diminish household incomes and our ability to feed ourselves.”

Mr Sweeting added that food security was vital in the fight against poverty and hunger, saying: “No nation is immune to this challenge.” He affirmed that The Bahamas plans to address these issues by investing in research and development (R&D), plus training of farmers, through institutions such as the Bahamas Agricultural and Marine Science Institute (BAMSI).

“We also intend to collaborate with the University of The Bahamas to eliminate duplication and

incorporate the administration, quality control, instructional, curriculum and research capabilities of the university to execute the initiatives of food security, agribusiness and the blue and green economies,” Mr Sweeting said.

“We are working closely with governmental agencies to build a state-of-the-art feed mill using new technology and utilising locally-grown products and additives to create a healthier, balanced feed, to ensure that farmers produce healthier, organic livestock and cattle.

“Moreover, we are working to ensure the quality of feed is on par with international standards. We are also working on further developing the cascarilla industry and making good strides in doing so.”

Extend remote working to mitigate energy cost surge

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net BUSINESSES were yesterday urged to mitigate the impact of rising energy and fuel costs by allowing the remote working practices that flourished as a result of COVID-19 to continue.

Philip Darville, owner/ operator of SolveIt Bahamas, told Tribune Business he is “prepared for $6 per gallon” gasoline prices given that pump prices are already close to $5.50 and the summer season is still months away.

“With the tensions in the Ukraine, I can definitely see $6 gasoline here by next month,” he said. “To me, this is already guaranteed.

I think I read something where they said it will be $6 internationally very soon, so if it will be $6 internationally and in the US, it will most likely be $8 here.

The Family Islands will get it worst.”

The last time gas prices rose to almost $6 per gallon was during the 2008 financial crisis, when oil prices surged well past the $100 per barrel threshold. “Fuel is something that impacts businesses from the ground up,” Mr Darville said.

“That’s your air conditioning systems, and it’s not only for your vehicle. All of that adds to your overall energy costs, but as a business owner I have been prepared for this.”

He added: “I encourage other business owners to allow their employees to continue this hybrid work system where your nonessential employees can work from home. This can help everyone to conserve on gasoline and energy.

“We have managed this work from home system for this long, so we can keep it up for a while longer if we need to. I think bigger

companies should promote the idea of remote work more.”

Dwayne Higgs, WHIM Automotive’s general manager, said he “knew” gasoline prices will continue to rise due to the threat of an all-out military conflict between the Ukraine and Russia. “This didn’t take me by surprise at all,” he added of rising costs at the pump.

“We’ve been through this before and it really wasn’t a good place back in 2008.

Gasoline hit $5.95, if I can remember correctly, and that was when I started to ride my little moped to work in order to save on gas. In this time people may have to car pool because, unfortunately, that is just the world we are living in right now.”

Energy and gasoline conservation measures will have to be employed again, but Mr Higgs said he was not so keen on extending remote work especially since some staff are still

TRANSLATIONS

required for face-to-face contact such as sales people who deal with customers over-the-counter.

He added: “The businesses that can are already taking advantage of the remote work environment.

If you don’t need to be in the office then you don’t

have to be. People have been struggling with this for decades, but some of the older employers want to be able to look at their employees and gauge their productivity. There is no easy way to see someone’s productivity levels in this remote environment.”

PAGE 4, Thursday, February 24, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

GB WATER SUPPLIER IN SMART METERS LAUNCH GRAND Bahama’s water supplier has launched a smart meter roll-out that will ultimately extend throughout the entire island.

Grand Bahama Utility Company’s (GBUC) initiative began on Saturday in West End and will work east to cover all customers.

Philcher Grant, Grand Bahama Utility Company’s

chief operating officer, said: “This is GBUC’s first step in the automation of our metering system.” She added that the project will improve the operational efficiency and mitigate the need to estimate consumer consumption, while providing greater accuracy in meter readings.

Apart from the smart meter upgrade, GB

Utility has implemented a leak detection programme, preventative maintenance and equipment modernisation as part of a wide-ranging improvement strategy.

Ms Grant added: “As the company continues to progress and invest in building back stronger and better, all of these initiatives are a part of GB

Utility’s long-term asset management programme to ensure we remain resilient against climate change and future storms.”

Anastasia Rahming, its utility relations supervisor, said GB Utility’s replacement of older meters with advanced technology smart metering will enable the company to address areas that have been hard to

access, as well as perform remote readings.

“Our GB Utility team encourages customers to assist us with the execution of this programme by ensuring that crews can easily access the meters by removing all debris from around the area of the meter and securing all dogs,” she said.

Ms Rahming advised that there will be a brief

interruption in service for 30-minute intervals while crews remove the current meter and replace it with the new smart meter. Work in West End was completed over the weekend, and crews are scheduled to continue the programme in the areas of Jones Town, Sea Grape, Pine Forest and Holmes Rock on February 26-27, 2022.

Bahamas to make Landfall in financial services again THE BAHAMAS Financial Services Board (BFSB) yesterday confirmed it is relaunching its in-person Landfall meetings with an event at the University Club in New York on March 22.

The industry body, in a statement, said the resumption of face-to-face contact with financial sector intermediaries and service providers following two years of COVID-related interruption will enable better promotion of The Bahamas and its product offerings.

Bahamas Landfall events provide an international audience, many of whom have the ability to direct

financial services business to this nation, with updates on legislative and business developments in The Bahamas. And participating BFSB members are able to connect with potential business opportunities.

The BFSB has scheduled a series of promotional activities in 2022 beginning with the event in New York, after halting in-person promotional activities at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The New York event is a collaboration with Hedgeweek, which is part of the Global Fund Media group, and Senator Michael Halkitis, minister of economic affairs, will open the briefing session.

TANYA MCCARTNEY

“Over the past two years we have conducted a series of virtual events as well as made extensive international editorial placements, which allowed us to engage with international advisors,” said Tanya McCartney, BFSB’s chief executive and executive director.

“Nothing replaces the face-to-face connections that Landfall events offer our members who participate in them. We are delighted to be back on the road again.”

Under the theme The Bahamas 360: The complete and compelling choice, financial services executives will address the

STANDING: Dr. Charles Diggiss, DHHS President and CEO; Taynia Farquharson, President of Long Island Association; Theophilus Claridge, District Superintendent, Ministry of Education.

Sitting: Mrs. Elma Garraway, DHHS Board Member and Community Relations Committee Chair, Mrs. Malinda Pratt, District Education Officer, Long Island.

DOCTORS HOSPITAL KEEPS PROMISE TO LONG ISLAND DOCTORS Hospital says it is committed to bringing healthcare support and scholarship opportunities to Long Island via its Promise initiative.

The BISX-listed healthcare provider, in a statement, said the effort - headed by Bridgette Sherman, Doctors Hospital’s senior-vice president of patient care services - extends the company’s Bridge to the Future (BTTF) initiative and features special offerings to Exuma, Abaco, Grand Bahama, Long Island and Eleuthera (EAGLE islands).

To launch the initiative, Doctors Hospital made an initial donation of much-needed computer equipment and supplies to Long Island via Malinda Pratt, the island’s district education officer.

The donation of four lap-tops, a printer and additional supplies marked the first step

in Doctors Hospital’s commitment to Long Island.

The initiative will next target students across Long Island who have an interest in healthcare and medicine. Doctors Hospital said it will provide life support training, certification and practice simulations to volunteer representatives from communities throughout the island.

Dr. Charles Diggiss, Doctors Hospital’s president and chief executive, said the healthcare provider views its EAGLE Islands initiative as far more than just “bringing services to these communities”.

“We see this as an opportunity to invest in the future by growing capability with training and certifications of members of these communities,” he added. “We will use our resources and our advantage to raise the standard of care on the island by assisting members of the local community in

obtaining life support and other certifications.

“When an emergency happens requiring life support interventions (CPR), it’s those persons witnessing the event and those first and early responders whose actions and decisions within the ‘golden minutes and up to an hour’ which will determine whether a victim survives.

These immediate and early responders live and work in these communities.”

Scholarship areas of certification will include patient care technician (PCT); emergency medical services technician (EMTbasic); and pharmacy technician. The programme will also provide scholarships to students interested in becoming certified medical Assistants (CMA) and phlebotomists (blood specimen collectors).

To qualify, students must currently reside on Long Island. “One of the

core tenets of Doctors Hospital is learning, so we look at every opportunity to assist in the space of education, particularly clinical education, as a way to further improve communities throughout the Bahamas,” said Doctors Hospital board member and community relations committee chair, Elma Garraway.

“I am delighted that Doctors Hospital has, once again, through its outreach programme really supported Long Island directly in a very special way.“ Long-term, Doctors Hospital’s commitment will allow for the distribution of two AED (heart savers) devices as well as partnering with healthcare providers in Long Island communities to maintain, at strategic locations, backboards, immobilisers and oxygen delivery for victims of trauma in Long Island.

range of wealth management products offered in The Bahamas as well as the new regulatory regime for investment funds, digital assets and registered exchanges.

Participants will hear presentations, and take part in discussions, covering the types of investment funds allowed under Bahamian law; the benefits of establishing a fund in The Bahamas; wealth management strategies; how the Digital Assets and Registered Exchanges Bill makes The Bahamas a centre for fintech; and The Bahamas’ value proposition as a financial services centre.

Speakers will include Christina Rolle, executive director, The Securities Commission of The Bahamas; Alexander Christie, McKinney, Bancroft & Hughes; Sharmon Ingraham, Higgs & Johnson; Wendy Warren, Caystone Solutions; Guilden Gilbert, CG Captive Managers; Valdez Russell, FTX Digital Markets Ms Rolle will also be featured on a panel at the Hedge Fund Leaders & Technology Summit, which is also being held at the University Club, on March 23 and 24,2022. The event is expected to draw between 150 to 200 executives.

MINISTER PLEDGES ‘BOLD STEPS’ ON NATION’S DISASTER RESILIENCE A BAHAMIAN Cabinet minister yesterday participated in the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate’s (AIM) first ministerial meeting Clay Sweeting, minister of agriculture, marine resources and Family Island affairs, in his address to the Dubai-based event, which was held as part of World Expo 2020, said Hurricane Dorian had made it vital that The Bahamas sign-on to the effort.

“The Bahamas will continue to take bold steps to strengthen the country’s resilience to natural disasters. By committing to the AIM for Climate initiative, this will catalyse greater investment in agricultural research, and encourage transformative climate action in the agricultural sector,” he said.

“During this year, the Ministry of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs plans to support greater diversification in the blue and green economies as a long-term, sustainable development strategy for the country.

“This will be done primarily by engaging our youth and women in focal areas such as the use of technologies in green waste, biofuels, bioenergy and agroecological research.”

AIM, which was established by the US and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the COP 26 climate change conference, aims to stimulate greater investment in agriculture and related innovation. It seeks to achieve this by

CLAY Sweeting gives his remarks at AIM. enabling science-based, data-driven decisions and policy-making that also aids climate change action.

Some 31 countries and 41 non-governmental partners are signed on to AIM. The meeting was held ahead of COP 27, which is expected to take place in Egypt next year.

“The ministers shared ideas of how we could contribute to sharing innovation and technology, and how we can work together, not only to affect climate change, but how we could adopt each country’s best practices to fight climate change for food securities as well,” Mr Sweeting said.

“The United Kingdom sparked my interest in sharing technology and innovation through school partnerships. We also spoke to the minister of environment of UAE about how they can transfer knowledge for climate smart seeds that can adapt to our climate and are similar to what they have here.”

WE ARE CLOSED

ON THURSDAY 24 FEBRUARY 2022 Dear Valued Customer, Please note that all Bahamas First offices in New Providence and Grand Bahama will be closed on Thursday 24 February 2022 to facilitate a company event.

Regular business operations resume on Friday 25 February 2022 .

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

BAHAMAS FIRST GENERAL INSURANCE LIMITED 32 Collins Avenue, Nassau, NP, Bahamas www.bahamasfirst.com | Tel: 242-302-3900

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 5

TAXI CALL-UP APP TO LAUNCH NEXT MONTH

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

AN APP that will allow Bahamian consumers to call for a taxi from anywhere, and at any time, will be launched next month, the Taxi Cab Union’s president said yesterday.

Wesley Ferguson told Tribune Business that the UniRide call-up app was finally ready after it

encountered challenges in becoming aligned to the Bahamian experience.

“The app needs to be adjusted to suit the Bahamian taxi ride experience.

We just can’t have a one-size fits all app like Uber. We have to calculate whether people want to take boxes or suitcases with them, and that’s going to come with additional costs,” he said.

“We were supposed to have that launched more than four months ago, and

it’s in the final stages. But, having said that, the developers are still having an issue with the variance in taxi fares.

“We’ve got different cars, we’ve got vans, we got big buses, we have SUVs, we’ve got sedans. We have a whole bunch of stuff that we need to compile in there, so when we roll it out it is seamless.

Our developers on Tuesday said they are on the final leg now.”

Mr Ferguson, meanwhile, said he is not concerned with Nassau Flight Services arranging ground transportation for guests coming into the airport. “This is something the other flight services do all the time,” he added.

Nassau Flight Services, in a flyer being circulated to potential customers, says it will now be offering ground transportation for incoming visitors, which may cut into taxi drivers’ business.

However, Mr Ferguson said: “So far Nassau Flight Services is not buying any cars. They just have some of their livery drivers contracted to do their transportation for them, but they are not getting into the transportation business.

“We are not worried about any competition from them. Not at this time. They are not buying any cars at this time as said. They will just be giving work out to the various livery drivers

to get these visitors as they come in, book them and take them where they need to go, and Nassau Flight Services will pay the driver instead of the client paying the driver.”

The taxi union also just received new taxi plate franchises for its members. Mr Ferguson said he is “waiting on a final count of how many from the minister (of housing and transport)”.

GREATER FUNERAL ATTENDANCE NO MAJOR BOOST FOR HOMES

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

INCREASED funeral attendance at churches will not produce a major boost for funeral homes, it was revealed yesterday.

Kirsch Ferguson, the Bahamas Funeral Directors Association’s president, told Tribune Business that while COVID-19 restrictions remain a “burden” for grieving families “any relaxation helps”.

He spoke out after the Ministry of Health and Wellness issued new COVID-19 guidelines

that further eased restrictions on funeral services at churches or places of religious worship. However, on New Providence and Grand Bahama, attendance at services must be limited to 50 percent of the facility’s capacity - an increase from the previously-allowed 33 percent.

And graveside funerals may be held on all islands without restrictions provided that all attendees and officiants adhere to COVID-19 protocols that are in force.

Mr Ferguson said: “Sometimes these funerals are rather large, so having limited seating takes away from families being able to have a proper grieving process and

being visually able to look at the deceased person and participate in a service.

“But families are understanding at this point because right now, for the past two years, we’ve been going through this and it has been a struggle from the onset. Any increase in the percentage is better, just so people could have a feeling that we are getting back to some normalcy, but people understand what they are engaged with in this pandemic.”

Funeral homes have been trying for almost two years to maintain the balance between profitability and services, with Mr Ferguson saying: “The revenue

for funeral homes is strictly our professional services.

Second to that would be the merchandise we sell, whether it be the caskets or the urns, but primarily it is our professional services.

“So regardless of what is being mandated by the Government, persons will still have to be buried and families still have to be cared for, and they will need our services.

“So those are two things that we focus on, but with this dynamic and the challenges we’ve been having as a whole, merchandise has been one of the things that we had to consider in terms of scaling back our profit margin just

CIVIL SERVICE INCREMENTS DELAY ON FINANCE SICK-OUT

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

A CABINET minister says the next round of increment payments to civil servants will not happen on schedule because of the finance officer sick-out that cost the Government some $7.5m.

Pia Glover-Rolle, minister of state for the public service, speaking ahead of the weekly Cabinet meeting, said of the next increment payments: “To my understanding, they won’t be getting them in this month. We started the incremental payments in January, and it was being phased.

This month would have seen the second tranche and that has been impacted.

“When that will be reintroduced, I cannot say.

That would be a Ministry of Finance question that we would have to have a discussion with them about.” Last week’s “sick out” by finance and accounting staff was said to have impacted government revenues as well

as payments to its vendors and contractors alike.

The move was blasted by the Ministry of Finance for costing the Government $7.5m in efficiency and revenue losses, which warned that it placed the possible payment of $7m in increments due to civil servants in jeopardy.

However, Fred Mitchell, the senior minister responsible for the public service, was said to have disavowed the Ministry of Finance’s statement on the matter. Asked to clarify this seeming confusion, Mrs Glover-Rolle said: “I don’t know the position on it. That, like you said, is a statement that came from the Ministry of Finance.

“We’re still in meetings, we’re still having the conversations. They will all be based on the reporting that we get back from the various ministries. And until then, I don’t think we can make a definitive statement.”

Mrs Glover-Rolle added: “By Friday, there were about 70 workers that were still out. As of Monday, there are a few still out. But what we have done is asked the

permanent secretaries from every ministry to provide a report of what is happening in the ministry in regard to the financial officers. So those reports are coming in slowly.

“From what we can tell, there’s minimal impact.

Salaries don’t seem to have been impacted, but special payments would have been impacted. That means deductions, or any special payments that employees would have had facilitated through their salaries.

She continued: “In terms of how it has impacted the nation, of course finance is a critical part of what we need in running a country.

So revenue collection would have been impacted and that doesn’t only mean from a perspective of cashiers because these were financial officers that are sitting out, but in terms of invoicing, reduced purchase orders, allowing the government to collect funds that are due.

“Additionally, we understand that outside of the payments to employees that may have been minimally impacted, some of the

finance officers that returned to work are able to facilitate some of the tasks that would have been left out last week.

“In a time like this, where there is a crisis, it provides opportunity, which means we’ve now looking at the organisational structure of the Government and ensuring that no group of employees is able to hold the Government, or put us in a precarious position, where there’s only a certain grouping of employees that can facilitate certain tasks.”

to accommodate families because of the financial distress people find themselves in.”

Besides the caskets and urns, items such as funeral booklets and limousines are considered “disbursements” by the

funeral homes and are merely passed through to other service providers despite them being shown on the final billing for clients. “We get zero profit from booklets and limousines,” Mr Ferguson said.

OFFICE CLOSURE

NOTICE

Dear Valued Customer, Please be advised that NUA Insurance Agents & Brokers will be closed on Thursday 24 February 2022 to facilitate a company event: We resume regular business operations on Friday 25 February 2022.

We regret any inconvenience this may cause.

NUA INSURANCE AGENTS & BROKERS LTD Third Terrace & Collins Avenue, Nassau, NP, Bahamas www.nuainsurance.com | Tel: 242-302-9100

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PAGE 6, Thursday, February 24, 2022

SWITCHING BANKS LIKE ‘GIVING BIRTH’

FROM PAGE ONE

initiative has provided greater transparency and consumer protection by empowering Bahamians with the knowledge of which institution may have the lowest rates and best suits their particular needs.

Rejecting the notion that price controls should be imposed on bank fees, and hitting out at “uninformed politicians” who have been calling for such regulation, the Fidelity chief said too many persons ignored the fact that physical in-branch transactions especially incurred costs that have to be covered by the clearing banks.

He added that the Central Bank had “laid the groundwork for a more intelligent and informed debate” on the issue of bank fees, although he acknowledged it was unlikely to end the public controversy surrounding them. Mr Bowe said discussion to-date had centred on an “emotional castigating of the banks and seeking someone to blame”.

The Central Bank’s comparisons found CIBC

FirstCaribbean charges the lowest fees for student and retiree savings accounts, with Mr Bowe’s Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) largely leading the field on adult facilities. Scotiabank (Bahamas) was ranked as having the most expensive levies in five out of the eight categories assessed.

And, when it came to fees assessed for missed or late loan payments, the Central Bank found Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) was the most forgiving when it came to late personal loan and mortgage payments with a $22.40 charge for each. Bank of The Bahamas matched it on late credit card payments, with both institutions imposing a $33.60 fee.

“I think what it has actually done is move consumer protection as we know it forwards and advanced it,” Mr Bowe said of the Central Bank survey findings. “A lot of times the view of consumer protection means imposing rules and regulations as opposed to educating consumers and telling them to make informed decisions.

“The regulator has a responsibility to make sure there is no price collusion, price fixing, anti-competitive behaviour and the likes of that. I think the bank fee release, which is to be done on a more regular basis as I understand it - it will be quarterly, if not semiannually - is more to take away the perception that all banks are alike.

“It also gives the consumer the ability to say which bank offers the products and services that are best-suited for my category or nature of my transactions. It stimulates the personal responsibility of banking customers to say: ‘Now that I have this information, who do I want to do business with and how do I manage my affairs?’” he continued.

“If I feel the fees charged by one institution are not commensurate with the services I am getting, and what the competition is charging, then I have the ability to move... I think the Central Bank has laid the groundwork for a more intelligent and informed debate and discussion.

“It’s laid the groundwork for criticism on the value proposition because it’s been laid bare, put in a comparative format that let’s persons look across and say: ‘What institution provides the best value for money?’”

Mr Bowe conceded, though, that greater consumer empowerment and transparency on bank fees needed to be accompanied by a process that makes it easier for Bahamians to switch their financial services business between different institutions.

“There’s been criticism that people are staying with institutions because it’s like giving birth to move to another institution,” he told Tribune Business. “That needs to be addressed as a country. If a person is verified by a commercial bank or a licensee of the Central Bank, that due diligence should suffice to move to another institution.

“We need to create the regulations and guidance that grant the ease to move your business, and pick the best-suited establishment for you.” The Fidelity chief then asserted that price controls are a non-starter as a method to regulate bank fees.

“I’ve long said to you that I support the retail industry - the automobiles, food and beverage - and the complaints about price controls,” he said. “I do share their sentiments that price controls are an antiquated system.

Market forces should dictate prices.

“From that perspective consumer protection is far better served by education than by trying to

regulate prices. Competition is a better source of driving prices to an equitable position. It’s no different in banking.

“There have been a lot of cries by uninformed politicians who have been calling for the regulation of bank fees, but in reality the Central Bank has demonstrated a progressive initiative in that persons are more than able to make decisions based on the information put before them,” Mr Bowe continued.

“I think the move by the Central Bank is teaching us to let our feet do the talking and, with the information provided to us, we have no one to blame but ourselves if we are not using that information to make best use of our limited dollars.”

Kenrick Brathwaite, Bank of The Bahamas managing director, told this newspaper that commercial bank fees were determined by the “strategy and philosophy” of each individual institution. Speaking to the results of the Central Bank’s survey, he said: “It’s not going to scare the banks into adjusting their fees.

“They’re going to adjust their fees according to what the overall strategy or philosophy is. I’m curious to see what the result of this will be. I’m sure the talk show hosts will tear into the fees, saying this bank is higher than that bank, but I don’t think it will do anything to anyone’s fees.”

Fees were priced according to a bank’s market, strategy and expected returns, said Mr Brathwaite, who praised the Central Bank’s publication of the fees and their cross-industry

THE TRIBUNE

comparisons as a move that will foster greater consumer transparency.

However, he added that fees are “not the money maker for the banks” and rarely make the industry’s “top ten” given that most institutions generate the bulk of their profits via lending. And both Mr Brathwaite and Mr Bowe agreed that the Central Bank release will likely do little to change the nature of public debate on bank fees.

“The debate around bank fees was not an intelligent and informed debate,” Mr Bowe said, pointing out that banks need to cover the costs associated with providing multiple services.

Likening bank fees to those charged by plumbers or electricians for providing their services, he added: “It was an emotional debate where people wanted to castigate the banks and were seeking someone to blame.

We very often don’t like to take personal responsibility for decisions within our control.

“From that perspective it’s very, very critical that we don’t allow emotional debate to override informative discussion. If I was to believe publishing that information will remove the criticism, I’d be naive because it was never an informed and intelligent discussion,” he added.

“It’s not to say banks should not be criticised.

There are areas we need to be criticised on and improve. But it was never a debate on how the fees are assessed, what are the inputs to be assessed, and what are the value adds.”

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 7

INFLATION DRIVES 5% PRICE RISE AT HIGH-END PROJECT

FROM PAGE ONE Top among these trends, Mr Kinsale said, is that beachfront real estate in The Bahamas is around 30 percent less expensive than competitor sites in Florida.

With buyers struggling “to find anything desirable” in the so-called ‘Sunshine State’, the Aristo chief said they were being attracted to take a closer look at this nation.

“We’ve finished the foundation and are just starting the first floor,” Mr Kinsale said of his $40m project, which lies on the northern New Providence coast in close proximity to both Baha Mar and former prime minister, Perry Christie’s, residence. “The first floor is scheduled to be completed over the next 30 days. It’s moving along quite nicely.

“This is the beginning, so we’ve got a ways to go.

There’s 10 storeys left. But we’ve got some momentum now, and here we go. We’re pretty on track. We lost a bit of time due to COVID-19, but are moving well.

“We have 40 guys on site now, and will ramp up to 150 in the next few months as we get more into the final stages of the project. The end of next year, December, is the finish target. If this world of ours can stay calm I don’t see what we will not make it. There’s always something that keeps you on your toes. Just when you think you can relax... there’s not a moment’s peace.”

High-end Bahamian real estate was one of the sectors that rebounded fastest when the economy re-opened following the 2020 lockdowns and border closures. Aqualina is among the developments to benefit, with Mr Kinsale saying: “We’re easily 60 percent sold now, so we’re pretty happy with that.

“We’re seeing a nice mix of buyers from Europe, Canada and the US. We’re seeing people seeking residency. The hotels have been really busy for the last two months, which is helpful in getting people here” to look at and purchase real estate.

Aqualina’s units are all three, four or five bedrooms, and have been sized at 2,600 square feet and up.

Prices range from $2.6m to “over $10m” for the penthouse. “The main thing is we don’t have so many units to sell,” Mr Kinsale added, drawing comparisons with his adjacent One Cable Beach project that was completed previously.

“One Cable Beach had 73 units. These are larger and more expensive. You learn as you go. Some at One Cable Beach were less desirable because of the shape of the building. At Aqualina, all look out over the water so we don’t have a bad unit in the building.”

Mr Kinsale, who has also developed communities such as The Balmoral and THIRTY|SIX on Paradise Island, said Aqualina had not totally escaped the

global supply chain disruption and inflation that continues to impact virtually all segments of the Bahamian economy.

“We’ve been fortunate because most of our requirement was concrete, and that is produced on-island,” he told this newspaper. “We didn’t see any major delays. We can plan for it, whereas people who were finishing their projects hit a major delay.”

Drywall, which was previously taking five months to arrive, is now down to a sixweek lead time.

“From a pricing perspective we’ve definitely seen an increase for sure on construction materials,” Mr Kinsale confirmed, “so we’ve had to increase prices on the units a bit as well. I’d say we’ve increased them by around 5 percent. We will have probably three more price increases of 5 percent throughout construction as well.”

Mr Kinsale said this was a common practice where prices were raised as a development progresses so that early buyers gain the reward of a lower acquisition cost. “We try and reward those who buy early and take a bit more risk,” he explained.

And favourable real estate market trends are helping to somewhat offset inflation’s impact. “What’s helping us is that a lot of our buyers are going to Florida and shopping around, and they cannot find beachfront

property in desirable areas,” Mr Kinsale told Tribune Business.

“Florida is at $1,800$2,000 per square foot for beachfront, and we’re at $1,200-$1,400 a foot. It’s a significant difference. The issue you’re having in Florida is that it’s very hard to find anything desirable, so buyers are saying: ‘Let’s go to The Bahamas’.

“I’m recognising there’s going to be a housing shortage here as well in the $1m to $5m bracket. There’s very limited inventory. It’s

definitely an issue. It’s not just us; it’s worldwide. But we don’t have as much inventory compared to other countries. We have to figure out how to build faster I guess.”

While nothing has crystallised, Mr Kinsale indicated that the growing lack of suitable locations in New Providence may lead him to islands such as Eleuthera or Exuma for his next real estate project.

“We’re always looking,” he added. “The issue we’re seeing now is it’s very hard

to find land. That’s the challenge we’re having, but that’s the business we’re in; developing. We’ll continue to do new projects in the future and a lot of people are talking about Eleuthera and Exuma as well. But it’s hard to find beachfront property for sale there, too.

“We are thinking about it, but are not doing anything yet. You’re going to be forced into it. That’s the reality. Nothing is certain right now by any means, but the prices they are asking in Harbour Island right now are over $2,000 a square foot for a lot of beachfront property over there. It’s very expensive.”

PAGE 8, Thursday, February 24, 2022

BTC REVENUES $17.4M OFF PRE-COVID LEVELS FROM PAGE ONE an unexpected “$24.5m BTC dividend payment in December”.

Extrapolating based on the Government’s 49 percent

BTC stake, it would appear that Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC) would have received a similar $24.5m payment given that it, too, holds a controlling 49 percent equity interest in the

carrier. The remaining $1m would have been received by the foundation that holds the remaining 2 percent ownership interest in BTC. The upshot is that $50m was taken out of the

company as a capital return to its shareholders even though revenues have yet to recover to pre-COVID levels. However, BTC was able to reverse the postliberalisation decline in its mobile subscriber numbers by adding a total of 1,300 new customers in the 2021 fourth quarter.

Some 900 new pre-paid, and 400 post-paid, subscribers were added during the three months to endDecember 2021, according to figures published by LiLAC. BTC closed the year with some 176,400 mobile customers, divided into 143,100 pre-paid subscribers and 33,300 of the post-paid variety.

Yet, while the mobile front provided better news, BTC also lost some 2,900 “revenue generating units” or customers in other areas of its business over the same three months. Internet and TV subscribers declined by 1,200 and 100, respectively, during the 2021 fourth quarter, while fixed-line phone subscribers also fell by some 1,600.

This dropped BTC’s total non-mobile customer base to some 72,400 subscribers at year-end 2021. This was

THE TRIBUNE made up of 33,000 fixed-line phone clients, some 30,000 Internet subscribers and 9,400 TV customers.

Andre Foster, BTC’s chief executive, told Tribune Business in a recent interview that the carrier plans “to become a real attacker” in the battle for market share with ambitions to build-out its new network by end-2023.

He pledged that all subscribers across The Bahamas will enjoy faster, better quality broadband Internet and TV services when it completes the transition from its legacy copper infrastructure to fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) within the next 23 months.

“It’s progressing well,” he said of the switch. “I wish I could say I was exactly where I want to be, meaning we have 100 percent of our network converted to fibre-to-the-home.

We’ve made a commitment to have fibre-to-the-home available throughout the archipelago by 2023.”

While conceding that more remote locations in the Family Islands will likely be serviced by wireless, as opposed to fibre, technology, Mr Foster said The Bahamas would be “fully FTTH in the main islands” by year-end next year as BTC and its parent entities

BAHAMAS AT ‘CRITICAL POINT’ IN GAINING COVID BALANCE FROM PAGE ONE

livelihoods of women have been particularly impacted, business and seek ways to as the tourism industry has incorporate new innovations traditionally provided many or digital tools as they pivot opportunities for the female their business models to workforce. adapt to the ‘new normal’.....

“There continues to be “Therefore, businesses gender disparities in the must find creative ways to unemployment numbers build a knowledge-based with female job seekers economy that improves pro- being more likely than men ductivity, competitiveness to be unemployed. Despite and prospects for economic their often-higher levels growth in a future that is of educational attainment, uncertain. This situation is unemployment is higher for further compounded by the women with a secondary or relatively low digital and university education comtechnological skills of the pared to men.” workforce at every level in With digital transformathese companies.” tion critical for Bahamian While the IDB credited businesses and the wider The Bahamas with having economy in terms of ensurbroadband Internet pen- ing their “continuity, etration that was among the resilience and growth”, the highest in the Latin Ameri- IDB added: “For businesses can and Caribbean region, to make this transition, together with mobile infra- employees and entreprestructure, it added: “Many neurs must develop digital people in the affected work- skills to identify, adopt and force post COVID-19 face leverage opportunities for challenges to equip them- digital transformation. selves with the skills for the “It is within this context future of work. that Avasant Foundation “Many of these workers will partner with IDB Lab lack awareness and access to deliver a digital skills to learning new technolo- programme to support the gies and digital skills due re-skilling and upskilling of to socioeconomic back- the impacted workforce in grounds, and the high costs The Bahamas. associated with training “The Avasant Foundaand COMMONWEALTH education. Further, the tion has been working in the OF THE BAHAMAS IN THE COURT OF APPEAL COMMONWEALTH OF THE BAHAMAS Industrial Tribunal Appeal Side IN THE COURT OFCivil APPEAL COMMONWEALTH OF Appeal THE BAHAMAS Industrial Tribunal Civil Side IN THE COURT OF APPEAL BETWEEN Industrial Tribunal Civil Appeal Side

continue to invest millions of dollars in the network’s transformation.

“Our goal is to be off the copper network by 2023.

That’s a big focus for us, and why we’re building it as quickly as we can,” he told this newspaper. The BTC chief also revealed that BTC plans to take the offensive in the battle for market share with Cable Bahamas and Aliv, asserting that 2021 had seen it build a platform to make gains in this area during the current calendar year.

“We are very focused on growing our fixed footprint, and we did a fairly good job in achieving some objectives around that in 2021, so we feel very confident that we are rolling back to BTC a strong base of fixed customers,” Mr Foster told Tribune Business.

“We feel post-paid mobile, we have done very well with that. On the pre-paid side I would say we are feeling good about our future there. We do have some great things coming up that will really bring back some subscribers in that area. We feel good about where we ended 2021. We feel there’s an opportunity to become a real attacker, retain our customer base, and we’ll see more of that happen for us in the future.”

Caribbean region over the past six years and has delivered digital skills training and employment placement support in Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Haiti and, more recently, Guyana. To date, Avasant Foundation has supported the employment of over 90 percent of digital skills training graduates within the local private sector.”

Turning to the project’s intended 500 beneficiaries, the IDB said: “Most of these displaced workers who have been temporarily or permanently laid off are from families with an average of 3.4 people per household.

Therefore the indirect beneficiaries of the project can be estimated as 1,700 family members that experienced loss of income due to the pandemic.

“Priority will be given to participants from low income households with the aptitude to undertake the training programme, and will target at least a 50 percent female participation rate. In The Bahamas, female-headed households have a higher rate of poverty at 9.7 percent as opposed to the poverty rate of 7.9 percent among households headed by men.

Additionally, 40 percent of self-employed participants will adopt digital business models.”

2021 No. 48 2021 No. 48 2021 No. 48

BETWEEN

BETWEEN

ISLAND HOTEL COMPANY LIMITED ISLAND HOTEL COMPANY LIMITED

Appellant

ISLAND HOTEL AND COMPANY LIMITED AND

Appellant

Appellant

AND KENDERICK ANDERSON KENDERICK ANDERSON KENDERICK ANDERSON

Respondent Respondent

Respondent NOTICE NOTICE TAKE NOTICE that by way of Notice of Appeal Motion filed in the Court of Appeal on of April, 2021, Hotel Company Limited anAppeal appeal on of the 1 day TAKE NOTICE thatA.D. by way of Island Notice of Appeal Motion filed inhas thelodged Court of NOTICE st

st the 1Decision Her A.D. Honour, Marilyn Meeres, Limited Vice-President of the day of of April, 2021,Mrs. Island Hotel L. Company has lodged an Industrial appeal of TAKE NOTICE that on by the way16 ofMrs. thNotice of Appeal Motion filed in the Court of Appeal on Tribunal, delivered dayMarilyn of March A.D., 2021.

The said Notice Appeal the Decision of Her Honour, L. Meeres, Vice-President of the of Industrial of April, A.D. 2021, Hotel Company Limited lodged anofappeal of the 1st day Motion seeks an Order Tribunal, delivered on that:the 16thIsland day of March A.D., 2021.

Thehas said Notice Appeal the Decision of Her Honour, Mrs. Marilyn L. Meeres, Vice-President of the Industrial Motion seeks an Order that:th day of March A.D., 2021. The said Notice of Appeal Tribunal, the 16be i. Thedelivered aforesaid on Decision set aside in its entirety; Motion seeks an Order that:ii. action beDecision dismissed against theitsAppellant i. The aforesaid be set aside in entirety; as the Respondent was not

wrongfully The action dismissed; be dismissed against the Appellant as the Respondent was not The aforesaid Decision aside in its entirety; The Appellant’s appeal be be set allowed; and wrongfully dismissed; The action be dismissed against the as the was just not There might be such further and or other relief which the Respondent Court may deem The Appellant’s appeal be allowed; and Appellant wrongfully dismissed; and equitable. iv. There might be such further and or other relief which the Court may deem just iii. The and Appellant’s equitable. appeal be allowed; and TAKE FURTHER that it was the which 17th day ofCourt February, iv. There mightNOTICE be such further andordered or otheron relief the may A.D., deem2022 just by the and Court of Appeal thatthat the itservice of the on aforesaid Appeal Motion be TAKE FURTHER NOTICE was ordered the 17thNotice day ofofFebruary, A.D., 2022 equitable. effected on you way ofthat thisthe Advertisement. by the Court ofby Appeal service of the aforesaid Notice of Appeal Motion be TAKE that it was ordered on the 17th day of February, A.D., 2022 effectedFURTHER on you by NOTICE way of this Advertisement. by the Court of Appeal that NOTICE the service of the the hearing aforesaidofNotice of Appeal be PLEASE TAKE FURTHER that the said Notice Motion of Appeal effected on you by way of this Advertisement. th April 2022,ofat the 10 o’clock in theofforenoon Motion take FURTHER place on theNOTICE 6 day ofthat PLEASEwill TAKE theA.D., hearing said Notice Appeal ii. i. iii. ii. iv. iii.

th before of Appeal and2022, at Claughton House, & day ofvirtually April A.D., at 10 o’clock in theShirley forenoon Motion the will Court take place on the 6sitting PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICE that the hearing of the said Notice of Appeal Charlotte Streets, Nassau, The Bahamas. before the Court of Appeal sitting virtually and at Claughton House, Shirley & th day of April 2022, atof 10Appeal o’clock Motion in the forenoon Motion will takeFURTHER place on The the 6Bahamas.

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the A.D., said Notice and the Charlotte Streets, Nassau, before the Court of Appeal sitting virtually andcollected at Claughton Shirley & PLEASE TAKE FURTHER NOTICEthereof that the Notice offrom Appeal Motion and Appellant’s Submissions in support cansaid be theHouse, Chambers of the Charlotte Streets, Nassau, The Bahamas.

Appellant’s Counsel Submissions support as setinout below.thereof can be collected from the Chambers of the Appellant’s Counsel as set out below.

DATED the 24th day of February, A.D., 2022 DATED the 24th day of February, A.D., 2022 HARRY B. SANDS, LOBOSKY & COMPANY HARRY B. SANDS, Magna Carta Court LOBOSKY & COMPANY Magna Carta Court 18 Parliament Street 18 Parliament Street Nassau, Bahamas Nassau, Bahamas Attorneys for the Appellant Attorneys for the Appellant

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 9

SMALL BUSINESSES BRACE FOR 25% CONSUMER SPEND DROP FROM PAGE ONE

Turnquest told this newspaper. “2019 was an excellent year; it was a stellar year.

Inflation and rising costs, it is a challenge.

“My clients have also had problems with California.

Some of them last year got stuff from California. There were shipping delays, and they had to reorder from Miami. That was a big, big problem.”

To remain competitive, Mr Turnquest said he had advised some of his clients to not pass on all the inflationary pressures to consumers in the final prices they offer. “I have already told them to be marginal in their approach to prices increases because you want to save face,” he added.

“Obtaining a new customer in this environment is very difficult and time consuming compared to keeping your existing customer base. We’re bracing for a challenging year, but it is expected. All of my

clients are expecting it to be a very challenging, and the only good thing they see coming is a reduction in COVID-19’s impact in terms of the closure of their businesses.

“We see the position of the Government, doing it’s best not to close us down, but inflation is not going to look good at all. The VAT rate cut to 10 percent was some minor assistance in reducing operating expenses,” Mr Turnquest continued.

“It was short lived because inflation started to hit instantly. What we found is inflation and high prices came three to four weeks after the rate cut. All it did was help one cycle, one month. After that other prices increased.”

Given that consumer spending in January and February was typically depressed in the immediate aftermath of Christmas, Mr Turnquest said the full extent of inflation’s impact will likely be felt in March

and as the calendar heads towards Easter in mid-April.

US inflation as measured by the Bureau of Labour Statistics hit a 40-year high in January 2022 with a 7.5 percent year-over-year increase. The 12-month rise in the US consumer price index (CPI) survey, which measures the costs of a wide variety of goods, was the largest since February 1982.

It also rose by 0.6 percent month-over-month compared to December 2021.

The US food index rose 0.9 percent in January following a 0.5 percent increase in December, according to reports, while the energy index also increased 0.9 percent during January 2022.

Even after stripping out volatile food and fuel prices, US inflation still rose by 6 percent on a yearly basis.

Used cars prices were 40.5 percent higher in January, while housing costs were up 4.4 percent.

Inflation’s impact at home is likely to be worsened by The Bahamas’

consumption-based tax structure, which means that import tariffs and border VAT - which are charged as percentages - will also increase. The amount of VAT dollars paid by the end-consumer will also increase.

The one mechanism at the Government’s disposal to mitigate inflation’s impact is to thus reduce taxes on essential commodities, such as food and fuel, but it is highly unlikely to do this as the post-COVID fiscal crisis

means it needs every cent of revenue it can get.

Inflation, described as a sustained rise in prices across the board, devalues savings and causes particular problems for those on fixed incomes such as pensioners. It also raises the cost of living, reduces living standards and narrows disposable incomes, with those less well-off inevitably hit hardest.

And, with many Bahamian households still struggling to rebuild jobs,

livelihoods and incomes following the COVID-19 pandemic, the spectre of inflation could not have emerged at a worse time.

It will also likely result in increased demands on the Government for social assistance, and slash purchasing power for many local consumers.

All of which is bad news for a Bahamian economy which is thought to be two-thirds driven by consumption or consumer spending.

PAGE 12, Thursday, February 24, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

LOWE’S POSTS STRONG Q4 RESULTS ON STRONG HOUSING MARKET

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Lowe’s Cos., the nation’s second-largest home improvement chain behind Home Depot, offered an upbeat annual outlook after reporting strong fiscal fourth-quarter results that showed a still sizzling housing market.

The report, released Wednesday, follows a robust quarterly report from Home Depot.

Home improvement stores have been busy during the pandemic as people working from home took on new projects. Many also moved into new homes with more space for a home office. A high inventory of aging homes has also helped

to propel home owners to fix up their houses.

Sales of previously occupied homes rose in January as a surge in buyers with cash and others eager to avoid higher mortgage rates snapped up properties, leaving the number of available houses on the market at a record low.

Existing home sales rose 6.7% last month from

SHOPPERS walk in the lot of a Lowe’s home improvement store in Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 17, 2021. Lowe’s Cos., the nation’s second-largest home improvement chain, offered an upbeat annual outlook, Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, after reporting strong fiscal fourth-quarter results that showed a still sizzling housing market.

Photo:Matt Rourke/AP December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 6.5 million, the National Association of Realtors said Friday. That’s more than the roughly 6.08 million sales that economists had been expecting, according to FactSet. Well before the pandemic, Lowe’s, under the stewardship of its CEO Marvin Ellison, overhauled an antiquated website and increased Lowe’s business with professional customers like electricians and contractors. That helped the company to pivot during the pandemic, when more people were relying on online services. And even

as Lowe’s now deals with industrywide supply chain issues and higher costs, it’s using its clout to keep shelves stocked while trying to tame inflation at its stores.

Ellison told The Associated Press on Wednesday that roughly 50% of the average ticket growth in the second half of 2021 came from product inflation.

“The customer is willing to pay more if the price is competitive,” he said. He said shoppers are also willing to trade up for more innovative products.

Lowe’s is also expanding to new areas to keep sales growing. The chain

announced in January a partnership with Petco Health and Wellness Company to create pet supply shops under the Petco brand at its stores. The plans call for opening nearly 20 shops in Texas, North Carolina and South Carolina by next month. It’s also tapping into the aging baby boomer market; it launched an initiative last year to create a one-stop destination at its stores aimed at seniors who want to stay in their homes.

Lowe’s, based in Mooresville, North Carolina, said that it earned $1.21 billion, or $1.78 per share, for the quarter ended Jan. 28.

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 13

EU SANCTIONS HIT RUSSIAN MINISTER, TOP ADVISOR, LAWMAKERS

By LORNE COOK Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union agreed to slap sanctions Wednesday on Russia’s defense minister, a top adviser to President Vladimir Putin and hundreds of Russian lawmakers who voted in favor of recognizing the independence of separatist areas in southeast Ukraine.

The sanctions, mostly a freeze on the assets of those listed and a ban on them traveling in the 27-nation EU, are the first steps in a planned series of retaliatory

measures designed to be ramped up should Putin launch an attack or push troops deeper into Ukraine.

They are expected to take effect later Wednesday.

Putin signed a decree recognizing Donetsk and Luhansk as independent and appears to be driving Russia’s campaign against Ukraine, but he is not on the EU’s list even though the sanctions target those “ involved in the illegal decision.”

Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Putin’s chief of staff, Anton Vaino, were among the

high-profile officials targeted, according to a list of sanctions seen by The Associated Press.

The EU said under Shoigu’s “command and orders, Russian troops have held military drills in the illegally annexed Crimea and have been positioned at the border. He is ultimately responsible for any military action against Ukraine.”

Vaino was said to play “an active role in Kremlin decision-making process by taking part in the Russian ‘Security Council’ and influencing the elaboration of decisions by the president in

the field of Russia’s defense and national security.”

The Commander-inChief of the Russian Navy, Nikolay Yevmenov, is also on the list, as are foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova and RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan — who are both referred to as “a central figure of the government propaganda.”

“The EU will extend restrictive measures to cover all the 351 members of the Russian State

Duma, who voted on 15 February in favor of the appeal to President Putin to recognize the independence of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk ‘republics’,” EU headquarters said.

The measures also hit banks that finance Russia’s armed forces. They target the ability of Moscow to access EU capital and financial markets and services, and ban EU trade with the two regions so that “those responsible clearly feel the

economic consequences of their illegal and aggressive actions.”

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has said the sanctions “will hurt Russia and it will hurt a lot.”

But Pyotr Tolstoy, the deputy chairman of the State Duma lower house of parliament who was one of the Russians hit by the sanctions, laughed them off and warned that Russia would retaliate with its own measures.

PAGE 14, Thursday, February 24, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

Whitmer signs bills to regulate pharmacy benefit managers

By DAVID EGGERT Associated Press DELTA TOWNSHIP, Mich. (AP) — Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday signed bipartisan bills into law that are designed to reduce prescription drug costs by regulating pharmacy benefit managers that oversee coverage for employers, insurers and others.

Parts of the laws took effect immediately while others, including licensing requirements and bans on “spread pricing” and “gag clauses,” begin in 2024.

Whitmer said the changes, which were recommended by a task force she created in 2020, will improve transparency and ensure that Michigan residents “have access to all the information about the back-end cost and profit of their prescription medication. This will help lower inflated prices.”

She signed the legislation at a Lansing-area Meijer where she was joined by Republican and Democratic lawmakers.

Three pharmacy benefits managers, or PBMs, dominate the U.S. market: CVS Caremark, Express Scripts and OptumRx. They are third-party administrators that set up lists of covered drugs, determine copays, negotiate rebates for some drugs to help offset high initial or list prices, and do other behind-the-scenes work.

They have come under growing scrutiny for their

role in drug costs. Starting in 2024, they can no longer charge a plan more for a medicine than they pay the pharmacy, nor can they prohibit a pharmacist from discussing costs with a patient or selling a cheaper alternative.

In 2018, then-President Donald Trump signed bills to stop insurers and PBMs from barring pharmacists from telling consumers when paying cash would be cheaper than using insurance.

“Many states started reining in the role of PBMs years ago. Michiganders have literally been paying the price, and that stops now,” said state Rep. Julie Calley, who sponsored the main bill. The Portland Republican said it “is one of the most assertive in the nation.”

CVS Health, whose Caremark business is one of the country’s largest PBMs, had asked the Democratic governor to veto the legislation, calling parts that directly affect patients “simply bad policy.” It urged legislators to instead focus “on addressing the true source of higher costs: the high list prices set by big drug companies.”

Provisions going into effect immediately include prohibitions on requiring patients to pay a copay that is higher than the selling cost of the drug and discriminating against certain hospitals and other entities that provide discounted medication to Medicaid patients.

GOV. Gretchen Whitmer speaks during the signing of legislation that is designed to lower prescription drug costs during an event on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, at a Meijer store in Delta Township, Mich.

Photo:David Eggert/AP

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 15

FORD President and CEO Jim Farley speaks during the official announcement of Ford Motor Company along with SK Innovations in building two electric battery factories in Glendale, Ky., at the Kentucky State Capitol in Frankfort, Ky., Sept. 28, 2021.

Farley says the automaker has no plans to spin off its electric vehicle or internal combustion businesses. Farley told the Wolfe Research virtual global auto technology conference Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022, that Ford needs to hit Tesla-like profit margins by using common electric motors, electronic components and other parts across all sizes of vehicles.

Photo:Timothy D. Easley/AP

FORD CEO: NO PLAN TO SPIN OFF EV BUSINESS, BUT CHANGE COMING

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer DETROIT (AP) — The CEO of Ford Motor Co. says the automaker has no plans to spin off its electric vehicle or internal combustion businesses, but is reinventing itself by removing costs and ramping up for large-scale EV and software sales.

Ford CEO Jim Farley told the Wolfe Research virtual global auto technology conference Wednesday that the company could hit Tesla-like profit margins by using common electric motors, electronic components and other parts across all sizes of vehicles.

But to do that, Ford needs radically different human talent than it now has, Farley said in a surprisingly candid interview with analyst Rod Lache. He also said the company has too many people and too much complexity, and it doesn’t have the expertise to transition to battery-electric vehicles. “That’s the simple answer. There’s waste,” he said.

Dearborn, Michiganbased Ford has about 183,000 employees worldwide.

Ford, Farley said, can’t just pivot from internal combustion engines to battery powered vehicles. The internal combustion engine organization is good at body, paint and manufacturing, and would be envied by startup EV makers.

But “I can’t turn to the ICE organization and say ‘go be Tesla,’” Farley said.

“They may do it on the (auto) body. They may do it in plant operations, but that’s not good enough,” he said, without giving specifics of what changes are coming.

Ford has only 15% of the market in the U.S.,

so the transition to battery vehicles is a chance to attract new customers.

But Farley said it needs to make the buying process simple and all online, with no inventory in the system and home deliveries of the vehicles.

Ford’s distribution costs are $3,000 to $4,000 higher than Tesla’s, Farley said, and is seeking to close that gap by attracting new talent with those skills.

Neither Ford’s internal combustion business nor its electric vehicle operations earn as much profit as they could, Farley said. The company needs more talent to lower structural costs and raise quality in its ICE business, and cut the cost of materials for electric vehicles, he said.

The company also can differentiate itself by doing online software updates so that customers understand how their vehicle is changing, and it needs to keep service customers so if they have a fender bender or a problem develops in four or five years, they can stay within a simple Ford system, Farley said.

He said also the company is working hard to secure raw materials such as lithium and nickel to make EV batteries, and to expect more announcements in the coming months.

Bloomberg News on Friday reported that Ford is looking at ways to separate its electric vehicle business from its legacy combustion operations to earn the kind of investor support enjoyed

by Tesla.

But Farley said Wednesday that’s not happening.

“We have no plans to spin off our electric business or our ICE business,” he said. “It’s really more around focus and capabilities, expertise and talent.”

PUBLIC NOTICE INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The public is hereby advised that I, Amanda Coulson of 4 Hard Bargain, Eastern Road, P. O. Box N-7776, mother of DAISY ABIGAIL VOGES intend to change my child’s name to EZEKIEL SIDNEY VOGES. If there are any objections to the change of name by deed poll you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P. O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of the publication of this notice.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, KARAJAHYAH YAQUARIUS IHAB FORBES of Caves Heights in the Western District of the Island of New Providence, intend to change my name to KARAJAHYAH YAQUARIUS MARTIN SCHLAGENHAUF. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Chief Passport Officer, P.O.Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

PUBLIC NOTICE

INTENT TO CHANGE NAME BY DEED POLL The Public is hereby advised that I, SHARELL L. BASTIAN of #2 Boswaina Court, Flamingo Gardens, Nassau, The Bahamas, P.O Box CR-56569, Parent of MARKAYAH ANN BASTIAN A minor intend to change my child’s name to MARKAYAH ANN ROLLE. If there are any objections to this change of name by Deed Poll, you may write such objections to the Deputy Chief Passport Officer, P.O. Box N-742, Nassau, Bahamas no later than thirty (30) days after the date of publication of this notice.

CALL 502-2394 TO ADVERTISE

THE TRIBUNE

Thursday, February 24, 2022, PAGE 17

JOB OPPORTUNITY Busy Optometry office in New Providence looking for full time Optometrist. Must have Doctorate of Optometry degree from an accredited college of Optometry or trained at a college of Optometry from the UK. Must be licensed to practice in country of training. Must be proficient in OCT and Humphrey’s Visual Field.

opticalopportunity36@gmail.com

NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that LUIS EMILLO CABRERA of Nassau Village, Nassau, Bahamas, is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 24th day of February, 2022 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.

MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com

WEDNESDAY, 23 FEBRUARY 2022

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX: BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 6.70 40.05 2.05 2.90 2.60 6.05 10.05 3.60 9.02 3.10 7.11 13.00 2.71 10.10 11.06 10.75 15.00 4.00 10.00 16.50

52WK LOW 4.50 32.12 1.46 2.20 1.30 5.50 6.00 2.82 4.25 2.27 5.00 9.75 1.99 6.50 9.50 8.40 13.10 3.42 8.00 15.50

SECURITY AML Foods Limited APD Limited Benchmark Bahamas First Holdings Limited Bank of Bahamas Bahamas Property Fund Bahamas Waste Cable Bahamas Commonwealth Brewery Commonwealth Bank Colina Holdings CIBC FirstCaribbean Bank Consolidated Water BDRs Doctor's Hospital Emera Incorporated Famguard Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) Limited Focol Finco J. S. Johnson

PREFERENCE SHARES 1.00

1.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

1.00 10.00 1.00

1.00 10.00 1.00

Bahamas First Holdings Preference Cable Bahamas Series 6 Cable Bahamas Series 8 Cable Bahamas Series 9 Cable Bahamas Series 10 Colina Holdings Class A Fidelity Bank Bahamas Class A Focol Class B

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00 100.00

SECURITY Fidelity Bank (Note 22 Series B+) Bahamas First Holdings Limited

CLOSE

CHANGE

%CHANGE

YTD

YTD%

2245.60

1.00

0.04

17.36

0.78

SYMBOL AML APD BBL BFH BOB BPF BWL CAB CBB CBL CHL CIB CWCB DHS EMAB FAM FBB FCL FIN JSJ BFHP CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA FBBA FCLB SYMBOL FBB22 BFHB

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing)

Abaco only.

115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 102.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.98 100.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 96.71 93.97 94.12 91.00 90.95 89.02 89.62 89.00 90.24 90.73

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.50 4.67 2.20 207.86 207.68 1.72 1.83 1.81 1.05 8.92 10.81 7.44 16.64 12.76 10.57 10.00 10.43 14.89

52WK LOW 2.11 3.30 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.68 1.73 1.75 1.01 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y BGRS FX BGR106036 BGRS FX BGR117037 BGRS FX BGR118037 BGRS FX BGR125238 BGRS FX BGR127139 BGRS FX BGR127149 BGRS FX BGR129249 BGRS FX BGR131249 BGRS FX BGR132249 BGRS FX BGR136150

BAH29 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0307 BG0330 BG0407 BSBGR1060361 BSBGR1170376 BSBGR1180375 BSBGR1252380 BSBGR1271398 BSBGR1271497 BSBGR1292493 BSBGR1312499 BSBGR1322498 BSBGR1361504

LAST CLOSE 5.30 39.95 2.04 2.39 2.49 6.05 9.50 3.30 7.99 2.82 7.00 13.00 1.93 10.06 11.25 10.75 15.00 3.90 9.85 15.51 1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00 LAST SALE 100.00 100.00 107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 89.62 100.00 100.00 100.00

CLOSE 5.30 39.95 2.04 2.39 2.49 6.05 9.50 3.30 7.99 2.82 7.10 13.00 1.84 10.06 11.27 10.75 15.00 3.90 9.85 15.50 1.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00

BISX ALL SHARE INDEX - 19 Dec 02 = 1,000.00 52wk-Hi - Highest closing price in last 52 weeks 52wk-Low - Lowest closing price in last 52 weeks Previous Close - Previous day's weighted price for daily volume Today's Close - Current day's weighted price for daily volume Change - Change in closing price from day to day Daily Vol. - Number of total shares traded today DIV $ - Dividends per share paid in the last 12 months P/E - Closing price divided by the last 12 month earnings

VOLUME

5,000

950 1,700

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CLOSE 100.00 100.00

CHANGE 0.00 0.00

107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 89.62 100.00 100.00 100.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund Leno Financial Conservative Fund Leno Financial Aggressive Fund Leno Financial Balanced Fund Leno Financial Global Bond Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund RF Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - Equities Sub Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - High Yield Income Fund RF Bahamas International Investment Fund Limited - Alternative Strategies Fund Colonial Bahamas Fund Class D Colonial Bahamas Fund Class E Colonial Bahamas Fund Class F

MARKET TERMS

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.10 0.00 (0.09) 0.00 0.02 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 (0.01)

(242) 323‐2330 (242) 323‐2320 EPS$ 0.239 0.932 0.000 0.070 0.070 1.760 0.369 -0.438 0.140 0.184 0.449 0.722 0.102 0.467 0.646 0.728 0.816 0.203 0.939 0.631 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

VOLUME

75

NAV 2.50 4.67 2.20 204.67 199.97 1.72 1.83 1.81 1.01 8.92 10.81 7.44 16.64 12.73 10.57 N/A 10.43 14.89

DIV$ 0.170 1.260 0.020 0.110 0.000 0.000 0.260 0.000 0.000 0.120 0.220 0.720 0.434 0.060 0.328 0.240 0.540 0.120 0.200 0.610 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

INTEREST Prime + 1.75% 6.25% 6.95% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.50% 6.25% 4.25% 5.40% 5.20% 5.22% 5.00% 5.00% 5.50% 5.55% 5.60% 5.65% 5.69% YTD% 12 MTH% 0.34% 4.30% -0.06% 5.21% 0.21% 2.72% 1.37% 3.18% 8.18% 14.94% 0.26% 2.76% 0.36% 2.37% 0.28% 2.51% -1.31% -3.43% 5.11% 6.98% 7.77% 9.88% 2.28% 3.71% 19.64% 29.95% -0.81% -0.62% 5.19% 2.28% N/A N/A 3.00% 25.60% 7.90% 48.70%

P/E 22.2 42.9 N/M 34.1 N/M N/M 25.7 -7.5 57.1 15.3 15.8 18.0 18.0 21.5 17.4 14.8 18.4 19.2 10.5 24.6 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

YIELD 3.21% 3.15% 0.98% 4.60% 0.00% 0.00% 2.74% 0.00% 0.00% 4.26% 3.10% 5.54% 23.59% 0.60% 2.91% 2.23% 3.60% 3.08% 2.03% 3.94% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2022 30-Sep-2025 20-Nov-2029 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2022 4-Aug-2036 14-Jul-2037 13-Oct-2037 15-Oct-2038 15-Jan-2039 15-Jan-2049 15-Apr-2049 15-Jul-2049 15-Oct-2049 21-Apr-2050

NAV Date 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 28-Jan-2022 30-Sep-2021 30-Sep-2021 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Jan-2022 31-Aug-2021 31-Aug-2021 31-Aug-2021 31-Aug-2021 31-Aug-2021 31-Aug-2021 31-Mar-2021 31-Mar-2021 31-Mar-2021

YIELD - last 12 month dividends divided by closing price Bid $ - Buying price of Colina and Fidelity Ask $ - Selling price of Colina and fidelity Last Price - Last traded over-the-counter price Weekly Vol. - Trading volume of the prior week EPS $ - A company's reported earnings per share for the last 12 mths NAV - Net Asset Value N/M - Not Meaningful

TO TRADE CALL: CFAL 242-502-7010 | ROYALFIDELITY 242-356-7764 | CORALISLE 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225 | BENCHMARK 242-326-7333

PAGE 20, Thursday, February 24, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

USPS GETS FINAL SIGNOFF TO ORDER NEW DELIVERY VEHICLES

By DAVID SHARP Associated Press

(AP) — The U.S. Postal Service said Wednesday it cleared the final regulatory hurdle to placing orders for next-generation mail vehicles — and getting some of them on delivery routes next year — despite pushback from the Environmental Protection Agency.

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy said the completion of an evaluation required by the National Environmental Policy Act is an important milestone for postal carriers, who have soldiered on with overworked delivery

trucks that went into service between 1987 to 1994.

The U.S. Postal Service’s fleet comprises more than 230,000 vehicles. That includes 190,000 local delivery vehicles — and more than 141,000 are the older vehicles, made by federal contractor Grumman.

“The men and women of the U.S. Postal Service have waited long enough for safer, cleaner vehicles,” DeJoy said in a statement.

Environmental groups have pushed back because only 10% of the vehicles would be electricpowered under the Postal Service contract with the

manufacturer, Wisconsinbased Oshkosh Defense.

The decision published in the Federal Register allows the Postal Service to proceed with placing the first order that will include at least 5,000 electric-powered vehicles, along with an undetermined number of gas-powered vehicles, Postal Service spokesperson Kim Frum said. The Postal Service believes it has met all its obligations and is moving forward despite criticism by the Environmental Protection Agency over the adequacy of the environmental review.

“After signing the contract to procure these

vehicles one year ago, the Postal Service conducted a fundamentally flawed environmental analysis that underestimates the costs of gasoline-fueled vehicles and overestimates the costs associated with electric vehicles,” Vicki Arroyo, EPA’s associate administrator for policy, said Wednesday in a statement.

Brenda Mallory, chair of the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality, criticized the Postal Service as “out of touch” with technology, putting itself at a disadvantage compared to competitors. Environmental groups joined in the criticism.

“Neither rain, nor sleet, nor financial good sense will stop the leaders of the U.S. Postal Service from trying to buy dirty, polluting delivery trucks,” Patricio Portillo of the Natural Resources Defense Council said Wednesday.

But DeJoy, an ally of former President Donald Trump, said more of the electric vehicles can be purchased under the contract if additional funding “from either internal or congressional sources becomes available.”

It would cost an extra $3.3 billion to convert the entire Postal Service fleet to electric vehicles. Money

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-Day Forecast

TODAY

ORLANDO

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 65° F/18° C

TAMPA

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

MONDAY

Partly sunny and breezy

Partly cloudy

Partly sunny and nice

Comfortable with partial sunshine

Mostly sunny and nice

Partly sunny with a shower in spots

High: 80°

Low: 69°

High: 81° Low: 69°

High: 82° Low: 70°

High: 81° Low: 69°

High: 80° Low: 67°

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

81° F

67° F

82°-69° F

86°-72° F

88°-74° F

87°-67° F

The exclusive AccuWeather RealFeel Temperature® is an index that combines the effects of temperature, wind, humidity, sunshine intensity, cloudiness, precipitation, pressure and elevation on the human body—everything that affects how warm or cold a person feels. Temperatures reflect the high and the low for the day.

almanac

E

W

ABACO

S

N

High: 77° F/25° C Low: 71° F/22° C

8-16 knots

S

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 69° F/21° C

8-16 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE

FREEPORT

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 72° F/22° C

E S

E

W

WEST PALM BEACH

W

uV inDex toDay

FRIDAY

N

N

| Go to AccuWeather.com

TONIGHT

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 67° F/19° C

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 66° F/19° C

MIAMI

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 70° F/21° C

6-12 knots

Statistics are for Nassau through 1 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 79° F/26° C Low .................................................... 66° F/19° C Normal high ....................................... 78° F/25° C Normal low ........................................ 64° F/18° C Last year’s high ................................. 86° F/30° C Last year’s low ................................... 72° F/22° C Precipitation As of 1 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.00” Year to date ................................................. 4.31” Normal year to date ..................................... 2.61”

ELEUTHERA

NASSAU

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 69° F/21° C

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022

High: 77° F/25° C Low: 71° F/22° C

N

KEY WEST

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 72° F/22° C

tiDes For nassau High

Ht.(ft.)

Low

Ht.(ft.)

Today

1:24 a.m.

1:40 p.m.

2.7 2.1

7:55 a.m. 0.3 7:54 p.m. -0.2

Friday

2:31 a.m.

2:51 p.m.

2.8 2.0

9:06 a.m. 0.2 9:03 p.m. -0.2

Saturday

3:40 a.m.

4:02 p.m.

2.9 2.1

10:15 a.m. 0.1 10:11 p.m. -0.3

Sunday

4:44 a.m.

5:06 p.m.

3.0 2.3

11:17 a.m. 0.0 11:15 p.m. -0.4

Monday

5:43 a.m.

6:05 p.m.

3.1 2.5

12:12 p.m. -0.2 ---------

Tuesday

6:35 a.m.

6:58 p.m.

3.2 2.7

12:14 a.m. -0.5 1:01 p.m. -0.4

Wednesday 7:24 a.m.

7:47 p.m.

3.2 2.8

1:08 a.m. -0.6 1:47 p.m. -0.5

sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 71° F/22° C

N

S

E

W

8-16 knots

S

10-20 knots

ANDROS

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

The higher the AccuWeather UV IndexTM number, the greater the need for eye and skin protection.

6:37 a.m. Moonrise 6:09 p.m. Moonset

1:12 a.m.

12:01 p.m.

New

First

Full

Last

Mar. 2

Mar. 10

Mar. 18

Mar. 25

CAT ISLAND

E

W

is included in Biden’s Build Back Better plan, but that proposal remains stalled in Congress.

The new vehicles are more environmentally friendly and boast modern amenities like climate control and safety features like air bags, backup cameras and collision avoidance — all currently lacking on the aging Grumman vehicles.

The vehicles are also taller to make it easier for postal carriers to grab packages and parcels that have been making up a far greater portion of their deliveries, even before the pandemic.

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 71° F/22° C

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 73° F/23° C

N

High: 77° F/25° C Low: 70° F/21° C

E

W S

LONG ISLAND

tracking map

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 72° F/22° C

10-20 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 79° F/26° C Low: 75° F/24° C

Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS

are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

RAGGED ISLAND High: 79° F/26° C Low: 73° F/23° C

H

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 72° F/22° C

GREAT INAGUA High: 81° F/27° C Low: 71° F/22° C

N

E

W

E

W

N

S

S

10-20 knots

12-25 knots

marine Forecast ABACO ANDROS CAT ISLAND CROOKED ISLAND ELEUTHERA FREEPORT GREAT EXUMA GREAT INAGUA LONG ISLAND MAYAGUANA NASSAU RAGGED ISLAND SAN SALVADOR

Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday: Today: Friday:

WINDS E at 8-16 Knots E at 7-14 Knots E at 8-16 Knots E at 7-14 Knots ENE at 10-20 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NE at 12-25 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots ENE at 7-14 Knots E at 7-14 Knots E at 7-14 Knots NE at 10-20 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NE at 12-25 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots ENE at 10-20 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NE at 10-20 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots E at 7-14 Knots NE at 10-20 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots NE at 10-20 Knots ENE at 8-16 Knots

WAVES 3-6 Feet 3-6 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 4-7 Feet 4-7 Feet 4-7 Feet 4-7 Feet 4-7 Feet 4-8 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-6 Feet 5-9 Feet 6-10 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 3-6 Feet 3-6 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet

VISIBILITY 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 6 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 6 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 75° F 75° F 75° F 76° F 77° F 77° F 78° F 79° F 76° F 76° F 80° F 80° F 78° F 77° F 78° F 76° F 79° F 79° F 77° F 77° F 76° F 76° F 79° F 79° F 77° F 77° F

PAGE 22, Thursday, February 24, 2022

THE TRIBUNE

THE WALL St. street sign is framed by the American flags flying outside the New York Stock exchange, Friday, Jan. 14, 2022, in the Financial District. Stocks wavered between small gains and losses in morning trading on Wall Street Wednesday, Feb. 23, as the crisis in Ukraine remains tense.

Photo:Mary Altaffer/AP

WALL STREET LOSSES MOUNT AMID SIMMERING UKRAINE CRISIS

By DAMIAN J. TROISE AND ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers

CALL 502-2394 TO ADVERTISE

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street’s losses mounted Wednesday as world leaders waited to see if Russian President Vladimir Putin orders troops deeper into Ukraine.

The S&P 500 fell 1.8% to an 8-month low, deepening the benchmark index’s “correction,” or a loss of 10% from its recent peak.

More than 85% of stocks in the S&P 500 fell, with technology companies weighing down the index most.

The technology-heavy Nasdaq lost 2.6%, led by steep losses in Apple and Microsoft. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.4%.

U.S. Treasury yields inched higher, as did gold prices.

Wall Street has been closely watching developments in Ukraine, where Russia has amassed troops for a new potential invasion. Russia has started evacuating its embassy in Kyiv. It has already sent soldiers into eastern regions of Ukraine after recognizing the independence of some rebel-held areas.

The U.S. and western nations have responded with sanctions and Germany withdrew a document needed for certification of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia.

Energy prices have been volatile — Russia is the world’s largest producer of natural gas and third largest producer of oil and a military conflict could threaten supplies.

The geopolitical tensions have added to investors’ concerns about higher interest rates. The Federal Reserve is expected to being raising interest rates at its next policy meeting in March. In anticipation of higher rates, investors had moved money out of growth areas such as technology stocks. The Russia-Ukraine crisis has exacerbated this shift away from riskier assets.

The latest losses added to Tuesday’s slump and the S&P 500’s slide into a

correction. The index had its last correction in the spring of 2020, as the pandemic upended the global economy. That correction worsened into a bear market — a decline of 20% or more — as the S&P 500 sank nearly 34% in about a month.

“We are clearly, solidly in correction territory at this point,” said Randy Frederick, vice president of trading & derivatives at Charles Schwab. “We need some kind of positive news, and there really isn’t a whole lot right now.”

The S&P 500 fell 79.26 points to 4,225.50. It’s now 11.9% below the record high it set Jan. 3. Shares in some of the biggest companies in the index have been hammered by the market’s swoon since the start of the year. Facebook parent Meta is down 41.4%, Tesla is off 36.3% and Microsoft is down 16.3%, while Apple and Google’s parent Alphabet are both down 12.9%.

Technology stocks led Wednesday’s broad losses.

Microsoft and Apple fell 2.6%. The sector has an outsized influence on the S&P 500 because of Big Tech companies’ high valuations.

The Dow dropped 464.85 points to 33,131.76, while the Nasdaq slid 344.03 points to 13,037.49. The index is now 18.8% below its November 2021 high.

Small company stocks also lost ground. The Russell 2000 index fell 36.08 points, or 1.8%, to 1,944.09.

Retailers and other companies that rely on direct consumer spending also weighed on the market.

Amazon fell 3.6% and Starbucks shed 3.7%.

U.S. crude oil prices remained volatile, slipping 0.3%, though energy stocks gained ground. Chevron rose 2.4%.

Bond yields edged higher.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 1.98% from 1.95% late Tuesday.

Wall Street is also still reviewing how companies are dealing with supply chain problems and higher costs in their latest round of corporate report cards.