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TUESDAY, APRIL 7, 2020

$3.89 Food supply chain in lockdown ‘strain’ By YOURI KEMP and NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Reporters A BAHAMIAN bread supplier yesterday revealed that the government’s total weekend lockdown had disrupted production to the extent that fulfilling orders by major retailers was impacted. Kimani Smith, Purity Bakery’s general manager, told Tribune Business: “When the prime minister shut down the country abruptly, and he did what he had to do, that basically disrupted our production schedule. “For example, we produce bread on Sunday for Monday distribution, so we weren’t able to get in the bakery on Sunday. We are making bread as of today [Monday] and we are going to be putting that out. “We are trying to adjust our schedules accordingly, but what is happening in the stores as you can imagine is everyone is a little panicked and afraid, so everyone is having a massive run on the inventory of bread. For example, if you are accustomed to purchasing two loaves you are now purchasing eight.” An e-mail sent yesterday by Purity Bakery to one of its customers, which has been seen by Tribune Business, warned that the late manufacturing start could postpone store deliveries until this morning. It said: “As you are aware we were all shut down this weekend. We normally produce bread on Sunday for Monday distribution, we were unable to do this and we are now in the process of producing. We normally start producing from 12am but had to start at 6am this morning. “Subsequently, bread may not be available to service your stores until Tuesday morning. Depending on the time the production run finishes we will do our best to supply before your stores close this evening. But certainly will service Tuesday morning.” Mr Smith, meanwhile, said bread demand was “impossible” to keep up with. He added: “Because it is not like baking bread at home, we have a whole process and a whole manufacturing plant. So it is

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Bahamas ‘steepest’ faller in 3-week hotels wipe-out By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

HE Bahamas’ suffered “the steepest” COVID19 tourism decline of all Caribbean nations with its number one industry virtually wiped out in three weeks, new research suggests. Data from STR, formerly known as Smith’s Travel Research and a widely-used tourism information tool, reveals that Bahamian average hotel occupancies went from suffering a 19.4 percent year-over-year decline in March’s second week to a catastrophic 90.8 percent plunge compared to prior year levels as the mix of border closures, travel warnings and airline cancellations truly bit. And The Bahamas also suffered the “largest drop” in average daily room rates (ADRs) among Caribbean destinations across those three weeks, together with the sharpest plunge in another key hotel performance indicator - revenue per available room (REVPar). The REVPAR decline, which started at almost 40 percent in the week March 8-10, then accelerated to 78

• Occupancies plunged over 90% late March • With revenue per room hitting just $13 • Led Caribbean in race to COVID-19 bottom

BAHAMAR RESORT

NASSAU CRUISE PORT

percent the following week and then to a 95.2 percent plunge to a disastrous $12.99 in the week March 24-30. Average daily room rates for the latter week were also down 47.8 percent against prior year comparatives. The data shows precisely why properties such as Atlantis, Baha Mar, Sandals, the British Colonial Hilton and the RIU had no choice but to close their doors and temporarily layoff thousands of staff once the final guests had left. With zero revenues coming in, they had little choice but to drastically cut costs including their wage bill. The STR figures show that The Bahamas’ descent was quicker, and greater, than the rest of the Caribbean and the region’s average hotel indicators and metrics for the period. A month that typically represents the winter peak for local hotels, with occupancies often in the 90 percent range, was swiftly transformed into a rocky

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Target ‘30-40%’ of food needs from local farmers By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net BAHAMIAN farmers would be able to “ramp up” production to supply 30-40 percent of this nation’s food needs within three years if the government provides the necessary funding and support. Caron Shepherd, president of the newly-formed Bahamas Agro Entrepreneurs Group, told Tribune Business yesterday that the COVID-19 crisis had highlighted the importance of domestic farming and the need to vastly improve this nation’s food security to counter potential import disruptions. Estimating that The Bahamas is meeting just three to five percent of its food needs from domestic sources, Ms Shephard said the pandemic had reinforced the case farmers had been trying to make to both the former Christie administration and its successor

• Agro Group chief: Can be done in 36 months • Sector supplies just 3-5% of national demand • Climate-controlled grow houses vital to revival for more financial support and other assistance. “This goes right back to 2016 when we had Matthew, and we went and agitated for the government to provide $60m,” she recalled. “Even if they had done 50 percent of that we would be in a much better position than we are now, and farmers would have been able to sow more crops and we would be able to sustain ourselves a little bit longer. “It comes back to what we were saying in 2017, 2018. I don’t want to be the one to say: ‘I told you so’, but it comes back to that dilemma.” Michael Pintard, minister of agriculture and marine resources, yesterday said The Bahamas has “adequate food stocks” in the short to medium-term.

However, he noted that several governments were mulling whether to reduce exports of particular foodstuffs their countries produce to conserve supplies for domestic consumption. There was also a slowdown in the harvesting, production and packaging of key staples due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the UK and European governments already warning of a shortage of crop pickers for upcoming harvests. Mr Pintard warned that The Bahamas “must prepare for what may emerge in this fluid environment”. Ms Shephard, concurring, added: “This shows how important agriculture is to our society, and how important it is for us to diversify

our economy so that we can be able to sustain ourselves. “We can actually do it. We have a comprehensive plan we’d like to implement. What we’re doing is selecting certain farmers to grow certain crops to the best of their ability, and others to grow other crops to the best of their ability, so we can have a crop rotation system. Farmers would be producing an abundance of crops year-round.” To achieve this objective, Ms Shephard added that it was critical for The Bahamas to develop/acquire temperature-controlled grow houses to ensure crops can be nurtured during the hot May-August fourmonth summer period.

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BRENSIL ROLLE

NIB facing three times’ its annual claims volumes By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE National Insurance Board (NIB) has just days to process three times’ the number of benefits claims it receives in a typical year due to the COVID-19 crisis, a Cabinet minister said yesterday. Brensil Rolle, minister of the public service and national insurance, told the House of Assembly that the social security system had received almost 18,000 e-mailed claims forms and associated information in the aftermath of the economic shutdown produced by the pandemic. This volume, which dwarfs the 6,000-7000 benefits claims that NIB receives in an average year, has forced it to “innovate” by developing paperless systems for processing COVID-19 related applications and partnering with private sector employers to make payouts to eligible employees who have temporarily been laid-off. Mr Rolle added that NIB is now “bracing” to pay out $16m a month “above what it normally budgets” in benefits payments. This translates into an extra $192m annually which, depending on the pandemic’s economic impact and how long it lasts, will further strain a $1.7bn NIB reserve fund which was already set to come under ever-increasing pressure. While no audited financial statements for NIB have been released since 2016, Mr Rolle confirmed that benefits payouts have exceeded contributions ever since that year. And previous actuarial reports have warned that the $1.7bn reserve fund could be exhausted by early next decade unless major reforms are swiftly implemented. The minister alluded to this yesterday, referring to NIB’s five-year “strategic plan” and the fact that the COVID-19 crisis had made implementing several of the reforms it contains almost imperative to secure the social security system’s future sustainability.

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‘Crème de la crème’ over Cayman deal By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN insurer is poised to become a “crème de la crème” operator, its chairman argued yesterday, after teaming with a Caribbean partner to pull-off a Cayman Islands acquisition. Sir Franklyn Wilson told Tribune Business that RoyalStar Assurance’s near-$5m investment in purchasing a 32.26 percent stake in Fidelity Insurance (Cayman), an insurance broker, would further diversify its revenue streams and help it “build capacity” to exploit further opportunities in both The Bahamas and wider region. RoyalStar teamed with Trinidad-based Guardian Holdings, which will own the remaining equity and be Fidelity Insurance’s majority shareholder, on the deal. Sir Franklyn, pointing out that Guardian Holdings has

• Bahamian insurer in JV broker purchase • RoyalStar ‘diversifies’ with one-third stake • ‘Builds capacity’ for future acquisitions

SIR FRANKLYN WILSON held 26 percent of RoyalStar ever since the latter was acquired from its former UK owners, said the Bahamian insurer planned to leverage this relationship to exploit further “opportunities”. He added that the Guardian Holdings tie-up had become even more fruitful following last year’s takeover of the Trinidadian

conglomerate by Jamaica’s National Commercial Bank (NCB), which is controlled by Jamaican-Canadian fund management tycoon, Michael Lee-Chin. This, Sir Franklyn argued, had placed RoyalStar in the company of two regional conglomerates that can “open a lot of doors” when it comes to the property and casualty underwriter’s growth in both The Bahamas and the region. The Fidelity Insurance purchase, which was completed on October 10 last year, closed before the COVID-19 pandemic ever emerged. The announcement was delayed due to Guardian Holdings being

a publicly traded company, but Sir Franklyn suggested that RoyalStar’s extra “capacity” would stand it in good stead should any growth prospects emerge in the post-crisis recovery. “We’re in good company here,” he told Tribune Business of RoyalStar’s further Cayman expansion. “The key point is that this is consistent with the idea of diversifying our revenue streams. We’re also deepening our relationship with the Guardian Group, which has been part of us ever since we bought out RoyalStar locally. “That relationship opens

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THE TRIBUNE

Govt to ‘accelerate’ local food production By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net THE government is allocating $1.627m “to accelerate food production” through various measures designed to reduce The Bahamas’ dependence on imports, a Cabinet minister said yesterday. Michael Pintard, minister of agriculture and marine resources, told the House of Assembly that his ministry has developed an Emergency Food Production Plan to lay the foundations for a strategy intended to diversify the economy and guard against future-type COVID-19 shocks. “Against this backdrop of COVID-19 we have an opportunity to be creative and resolute, and change fundamentally how we approach our national economy and where we position food security and non-food agriculture production,” he said. Mr Pintard said focus was being placed on “14 sensitive products” whose importation is restricted due to their importance to Bahamian farmers’ incomes and their ability to be produced domestically. “In order to accelerate food production, the focus needs to be on strengthening the production systems of existing farmers through the provision of inputs - seeds, guaranteed prices, feed and animals - on all islands with specific emphasis on North Andros, Abaco, Grand Bahama, Cat Island, Exuma and Eleuthera to increase production of targeted crops and livestock,” he added. The minister added that The Bahamas also needed to focus on “making hydroponic systems and shade/ greenhouses available to a range of producers, including young farmers and backyard gardeners”.

MICHAEL PINTARD He continued: “The hydroponic method is supremely efficient both in the use of water and in physical growing space. The use of water in hydroponic systems, when compared to traditional farming, creates a higher level of efficiency. With the use of shade/ greenhouses, one acre produces ten acres of traditional farming methods.” Outlining where the government’s assistance will be targeted to reduce food imports, Mr Pintard said some $343,000 will be spent on 343 such hydroponic systems. Some $240,000 will be allocated to 10,000 backyard gardening kits, with $376,217 targeted at increasing egg production. Separately, he added that more than $1m will be made available for land clearing and preparation purposes in Abaco and Grand Bahama. “It is the intention of our ministry to assist farmers in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas by providing clearing and preparation of farm land through two allocations which exceed $1m,” Mr Pintard said. “Through the IDB (InterAmerican Development Bank) Dorian facility, we have designated $1m to catalyse agriculture on Abaco and Grand Bahama commencing with extensive land clearing and preparation.”

He continued: “In the first instance we have plans to assist 19 farmers in Grand Bahama, and 40 on Abaco, at a total cost of some $479,600. Second, through our regular budgetary allocation, we intend to utilise funds to clear and prepare lands for farmers in the remainder of the Bahamas. “This week our ministry will work with the Ministry of Transport and Local Government, through island administrators and agriculture staff, to accomplish this end. Funds will be transferred to the respective islands commencing this week.” Mr Pintard said “more than $400,000 is being allocated to assist with seeds, plants, promix, livestock, animal feed and fertilizer”, while the ministry plans to “build capacity of Family Island farmers through provision of valuable information and technical assistance, often delivered through ICTs (information communication technology)”. He added: “We are executing the repairs of three packing houses to accommodate the increased demand which we have already seen”, with the ministry “identifying storage facilities nationwide to accommodate food reserves for residents, plants and animals”.

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Tuesday, April 7, 2020, PAGE 3

E-commerce providers in 75% demand uptick By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

four additional vehicles to his fleet to manage the huge spike in demand. Yet he warned others not to rush into the e-commerce business in an attempt to cash in on the pandemic. He said: “They are requesting online businesses for everybody else, but that’s not an easy course. First of all, an app takes about six to eight months to get done. Since we had launched in September, we had a good six months to test run. “So if everyone comes out with their platform right now it is going to be a whole heap of headaches. We have already gone through our headaches, and the only headaches we are going through right now is dealing with the influx. But we are thankful for it, and we are learning ourselves in the fire right now. Once this is all done we may lose maybe 20 percent of the customers that came on the new app, but I think a lot of persons are going to go in the new direction.” Mr Turnquest added: “To be honest I am

actually considering close my storefront and only doing everything through the app, and the storefront would just be for pickup orders only. That’s the direction I was ever going in, and I didn’t create my app because of this [pandemic]. My app was created in September to eliminate my storefront; I just didn’t see the movement to do so. That may be a risk I take but I think this is the way the world is going now.” Revealing that his business receives four to five shipments a week, Mr Turnquest said: “While our space may be small, it helps us to keep fresh product. The other thing is that there are other apps, but they have to actually go to a store and purchase goods. “We own our own products, which makes our product cheaper and our delivery is only $10. I have big freezers and coolers. I am a grocery store. I supply restaurants and hotels as well. So we have the product and we give the consumer the wholesale price.”

Kyle Albury, owner of Kraven food and beverage delivery service, told Tribune Business: “It’s been going OK. Business has picked up in the last three days or so, and I have been getting a lot of interest from vendors as well. Yes, I have on-boarded a few more restaurants in the last week or so, and the order count has definitely increased. My order count has increased by 40 percent. “My client base would be individuals, but obviously I have partnerships with the different restaurants as well. So I assume they are my clients as well, but technically I service individuals.” Mr Albury said he has increased staff and “on-boarded” 30 more drivers because of the greater demand, and to help to deal with the additional vendors he has taken on. “We have some of the major franchises that we have onboarded with two additional ones we will be on-boarding next week,” Mr Albury said. “It’s been very busy. I am exhausted. We practice good hygiene, and we

practice proper standards in terms of sanitary measures in terms of our drivers delivering food to our customers. We have mandated that all of our of drivers sanitise their insulated bags that we transport the food in to keep it warm, and we also follow the protocols that are instructed by the government in terms of washing your hands, using hand sanitisers when going into the restaurants, opening doors. “We implemented the sixfeet policy. We would leave the bag by their doorstep, and step away and let them pick up the bag. In addition to that I have given my drivers disposable gloves. Some have opted for them and some have not, and we have given them masks in terms of doing delivery as well,” he continued. “The safety of our customers, and our vendors and drivers, is very important to us, and we are taking this thing very seriously. We have taken steps to mitigate any issues that may affect the people in our business chain.”

Consumers face ‘all out war’ to restock

visiting grocery stores in a bid to halt the COVID-19 pandemic’s spread locally. It calls for households to designate one person to shop on their behalf and, based on the first letter of their surname, they will be allowed to purchase food at certain times on specific days. Adults with a surname beginning with the letters A through F will be allowed to shop on Mondays from 6am to noon, Wednesdays from 6am to noon, and Thursdays from 1pm to 7pm. Adults with surnames beginning with G through O will be allowed to shop on Mondays from 1pm to 7pm, Wednesdays from 1pm to 7pm, and Fridays from 6am to noon. Adults whose last name begins with letters P through Z will be allowed to shop on Tuesdays from

1pm to 7pm, Fridays from 1pm to 7pm and Thursdays 6am to noon. Travarus Barrow, general manager of the Phoenix supermarket on East Street South, said: “Everything is under control from our perspective. We are following through with procedure governmental wise, and the people are just abiding by what they see happening right now. “The only thing is the weather putting a little damper on things, but they are still coming. People are still coming, especially after the announcement that on Wednesday everything shuts down for sure. Everyone is in a frenzy.” When asked if customers were abiding by the government’s shopping schedule, Mr Barrow added: “We had no problem with that. Everybody

has been showing their identification and, as they come in the store, we just adjust things as we see fit. They are not bringing their kids like last week. “For instance, one or two people tried to bring their kids inside the store, but we told them that they have to leave their kids inside the car and they are abiding by things and they are following.”

E-COMMERCE businesses have seen a dramatic spike in demand for their services as they try to keep pace with the influx of new customers amid the COVID-19 lockdown. Ryan Turnquest, owner of Discount Distributors, the manager of the produceexpresss.com web app, told Tribune Business he has seen a 75 percent increase in business volumes since the start of the government’s emergency powers orders in late March. He added that the increase has been “across the board on everything, even slow moving items. Persons are just shopping and just staying safe. We have been an engine to help people stay safe, and a lot of customers don’t have to go to the shop when they shop with us,” Mr Turnquest said. “I think our platform may be the only platform really ready for it because we have sufficient delivery

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net FOOD retailers yesterday said Bahamians are “abiding” by the government’s new shopping list protocol even though the upcoming five-day lockdown means many face “an all-out war” to restock. Bradley Rolle, Centreville Food Market’s general manager, told Tribune Business: “The shopping list is going pretty good. It’s just that there are some people who were not aware that the shopping list had actually come out. The shopping list was leaked out on social media, so a lot of people were trying to figure

vehicles, both refrigerated and also electric, so we are trying to stay green at the same time. We are working with Easy Car sales with their electric vehicles.” Mr Turnquest continued: “We have a 75 percent increase in business. Before this pandemic we only had 1,000 users, and we now have 6,000 users in the last two weeks. We have added 5,000 in the last two weeks. These are actual orders. Because of the curfew we actually have over a 3,000 order backlog but we’re working on it right now. “Normally before the curfew came in we delivered up until 11pm. We have six vehicles that are losing four hours of delivery time. We are now at three days to get orders now; it is a 72-hour lead time, so people just need to be more organised in their ordering if they expect it in 72 hours. Wal-Mart is on 96 hours, so I don’t feel so bad.” Since the nationwide lockdown, Mr Turnquest said he added ten staff members and

out how authentic it was. “People showed up to the food store yesterday morning not knowing that they had to go by a shopping list, but now that the prime minister has made it known in Parliament everyone is falling in line. Prior to that there was no official information coming out to the public about the shopping list taking effect on a particular day, so it is out and it is in force and people are abiding by that.” However, Mr Rolle questioned the logic of the shopping list based on the five-day Easter weekend lockdown. “One thing I find very interesting, though, if there is going to be a shut down as of Wednesday

9pm, and then we resume 5am on Tuesday, then the shopping list doesn’t make any sense,” he argued. “So it is like, for now, an all-out war to have enough items in your house until next week Tuesday. You should just level the playing field and allow people to come and get items if you are going to shut down Wednesday at 9pm. But for the most part for the first five hours yesterday it was fine. People came and they had their identification, and we allowed them to shop, so we will see what happens.” The government’s food shopping schedule is designed to minimise the number of Bahamians travelling on the road and/or

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PREFERRED DIVIDEND PAYMENT FOCOL is pleased to announce a

dividend payment to all holders of CLASS ‘B’ preference shares as of April 15, 2020 payable within ten business days of the record date through THE BAHAMAS CENTRAL SECURITIES DEPOSITORY.

“Fuelling Growth For People”

PAGE 4, Tuesday, April 7, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

CABLE BAHAMAS TEAMS FOR CASH BILL PAYMENTS

NIB facing three times’ its annual claims volumes

CABLE Bahamas has teamed with a Bahamian money transmission services provider to enable customers to pay their REV bills in cash during the COVID-19 pandemic. Barry Malcom, SunCash’s director, said: “Sun Island Transfers Ltd or SunCash is very pleased to have concluded an agreement to partner with Cable Bahamas to provide services to their customers using the SunCash network. “We’ve worked with Cable Bahamas for quite a while to come to a point at which our customers can walk into our stores and pay bills for Cable Bahamas in real time on a great, reliable system. This relationship is part of a broader partnership we envision having with Cable Bahamas as more of our SunCash products are rolled out, and as Cable Bahamas comes to see the speed, efficiency and viability of using Suncash for their customers.” While Cable Bahamas subscribers are able to manage their

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accounts using the company’s online portal, MyAccount or automatic e-billing, the BISX-listed communications provider acknowledged cash payments remain the preferred option for some. Subscribers will be able to to make cash payments at SunCash locations in Nassau and Freeport, and a number of Family Islands including Abaco, the Berry Islands, Eleuthera, Exuma, Acklins and Mayaguana. SunCash has also made its digital app platform available for Cable Bahamas customers to pay their REV bill. Nerika Burrows, Cable Bahamas’ vice-president of finance, said: “In this new phase of digital transformation it is very important that we meet our customers across The Bahamas where they are, and put the power of bill pay at their fingertips. SunCash will make this all possible for us.” Mr. Malcolm added: “SunCash has the largest payments network in the country. We have 32 locations all over The Bahamas. We’re in basically every major island of The Bahamas, and additionally the platform itself allows individuals from anywhere inside The Bahamas to access a means by which they can pay their Cable Bahamas bill or any other utility bill within the country.”

For now, though, NIB is doing exactly what it was created for - providing income support and a social safety net to thousands of Bahamians and their families who have either suffered job losses or reduced incomes as a result of the pandemic’s fall-out. “This crisis has placed unprecedented strain on the NIB. The normal rules of engagement do not apply,” Mr Rolle told the House yesterday. “The task is great for NIB. In one month it has had to be transformed into a a paperless operation to swiftly process claims. “NIB has received roughly 18,000 e-mails of claims forms and other information to process.... NIB currently processes between 6,000 to 7,000 applications a year. Now we’re challenged today to process thousands in just one day.” Mr Rolle said NIB has dedicated a 60-strong team to process these claims and the documents received from both workers and their employers. To reduce the processing burden, and speed

up the payment of muchneeded benefits, the minister confirmed it had entered into agreements that will see companies perform this function on NIB’s behalf. In returning for paying due benefits to eligible staff members, the minister confirmed these firms will receive contribution credits to offset the sums paid. “NIB’s goal is to pay people quicker,” he added. “NIB encourages other employers to make similar arrangements with the Board. “NIB has 20 large companies in the process of using this innovative method so that persons will be paid as quickly as possible. NIB anticipates 14,000-15,000 claims being handled by this arrangement and, if done, those people will be paid in the quickest possible time.” Mr Rolle said almost 9,500 unemployed Bahamians will receive benefits cheques, totalling some $4.5m, this week to cover their essential needs for a fortnight. “We are advised that the audit process is near completion, so the payments will be disbursed to 9.500 persons in the quickest fashion,” he added. Using employers as benefits payment agents had enabled NIB to focus on employers who are not current with their social security contributions. Mr Rolle

said staff had been working with companies to ensure the C-10 contribution forms were properly completed and submitted so that laidoff workers will receive due benefits. “Notwithstanding that their former employer was in arrears, they can still be eligible for this unemployment benefit,” he promised. Mr Rolle said NIB may also relax its benefit qualification criteria in certain circumstances where it made common sense to do so, such as a person with six months’ contributions instead of the required seven but the March C-10 form not submitted yet. With NIB still receiving “too many hand-written C-10 forms”, which requires staff to then enter the data into their system, Mr Rolle said it was now going to require all companies with more than ten employees to submit contribution information either via its online portal or Excel spreadsheet on its website. Of the 2,666 benefits claims received from self-employed persons in the tourism sector, the minister said some 1,494 had been approved covering the full range from straw vendors to taxi drivers, tour operators, scooter rentals, jet ski operators and zip line operators. As for those rejected, Mr Rolle said they should look at

NIB’s replies and see why this was the case. He added that some had just placed their name on the form, with no other details submitted. Conceding that NIB will take a financial hit for performing its reason for being, the minister added: “The benefits paid out by NIB already outstrip contributions paid to NIB since 2016. After feeling the effects of Dorian, the Board is in a place where it must brace for a major drawdown of its resources. “The drawdown is to the tune of $16m a month above what is normally budgeted by the board. We are preparing for increased sickness benefits paid out as a result of the quarantine and isolations by the Ministry of Health. “NIB has prepared a fiveyear strategic plan but this crisis has brought us to the point where we must implement some of the things planned for the future.” Mr Rolle added that NIB’s early payment of April’s pensions had injected $20m into the Bahamian economy, and he pledged: “I want Bahamians to know that NIB is coming to their rescue, and the Government of the Bahamas is coming to their rescue at this time.”

‘Crème de la crème’ over Cayman deal

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up a lot of opportunities. We can participate in a lot of their insurance programmes

throughout the region. It is great for us from a strategic point of view because it gives us a lot of opportunities through which to diversify. “Now the Guardian Group is part of the NCB banking group. This is really the crème de la crème of the Caribbean. Between NCB banking group in Jamaica, and Guardian Group in Trinidad, you don’t get much better than that in the Caribbean. The implications are immense.” Sir Franklyn added that RoyalStar was also in “very unique kind of company” in The Bahamas by virtue of its involvement in Gateway Financial, the distressed mortgage work-out firm, where it has partnered with Mexico-based Ascendancy and an arm of the World Bank. “If we wanted to do something that was large, the strategic relationships we have open a lot of doors,” he added. “RoyalStar is really positioned to be a crème de la crème company in

the insurance business in The Bahamas. No question about it.” While unable to to say how much the Fidelity Insurance stake will contribute to RoyalStar Assurance’s projected profits, Sir Franklyn described it as a “natural fit” for both the Bahamian insurer and Guardian Holdings as it wrote significant business for both carriers. The broker was previously owned by the Cayman-based affiliate of Fidelity Bank (Bahamas). It has exited non-core businesses by selling its insurance brokerage to the Guardian Holdings/RoyalStar duo, while also disposing of its Cayman-based pension administration business to former Bahamian affiliate, RoyalFidelity Merchant Bank & Trust. “This goes beyond what our share of the profits is,” Sir Franklyn added. “This is about capacity building. We are building capacity to enable the company [RoyalStar] to exploit opportunities. Combine this

with the other relationships that RoyalStar has, and it is in position to do a lot of things. “That includes being a bigger player in The Bahamas should the opportunities arise, and a bigger player beyond our borders. It’s also investment income, which is important to general insurers. We are always on the look out for what makes sense, and not just in the insurance business. Building capacity is the key part of the success of any insurance company.” Sir Franklyn said such opportunities may arise in a post-COVID-19 landscape. “There are some companies that, a month ago, were good companies, and they might find they will be looking for equity partners; whatever, I don’t know. “What I’m saying to you is that RoyalStar will have more capacity, and we don’t know what opportunities we’ll have to utilise that capacity, but we’ll find them. We’ll see.”

Target ‘30-40%’ of food needs from local farmers FROM PAGE ONE Explaining that this was key to achieving year-round production, she added that the Agro Entrepreneurs Group has been working with a Caribbean-Israeli venture to put such facilities in place for 2021. “We’re only supplying a drop in the bucket. The percentage we’re producing now is between three to five percent,” she told Tribune Business of Bahamian agriculture’s share of the country’s near $1bn food import bill. “Moving forward, once all the dynamics and

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mechanisms are in place we’ll be able to increase that significantly. I would definitely say we’ll be able to put a significant dent in that import bill to the tune of 30-40 percent if we’re able to ramp things up. I would look at that target of between 30-40 percent. “Everything hinges on funding. If the funding is in place I’m sure we’ll be able to do that within 36 months or so. One of the main things is having the green houses and grow houses in place to be able to grow. When you lose that fourmonth window that’s a big window in there that we’re

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losing out,” Ms Shephard added. “Once we’re able to get that window covered we should be able to do a whole lot. With egg and chicken production we have one of the farmers doing an awesome job, and he cannot keep enough eggs and chickens on a weekly basis. We have two to three other farmers interested in eggs and chicken. It just warrants the government backing the farmers in being able to commit to moving in this direction.” Ms Shephard added that she and the Agro Entrepreneur Group were awaiting more details from Mr Pintard on how the government plans to assist Bahamian agriculture, including the size of the grow houses and how he intends to distribute the likes of hydroponic green houses and seeds. “We’re yet to see or get more concrete details as to what’s going to be done,” she said. “How things are going to be distributed. I’m not sure exactly how that’s going to pan out until we can actually speak to him. One thing I can say is that when we first approached the government in 2016, 2017 and continuously in 2018 to let them know what the status is it fell on deaf ears. “Farmers, as I have been saying before, are ready and willing to do what needs to be done to take agriculture to the next level. We’ve not had the funding, but the little resources the farmers have had they’ve been working with and turning things over.”

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, April 7, 2020, PAGE 5

Bahamas ‘steepest’ faller in 3-week hotels wipe-out FROM PAGE ONE roller-coaster race to the bottom. Taking the March 8-14 period, and comparing it with the same week in the prior period, STR found: “Among data-sufficient islands within the Caribbean region, The Bahamas saw the steepest year-over-year decline in demand (-19.5 percent). “That led to the secondlargest decline in occupancy (-19.4 percent to 70.4 percent), which coupled with the largest drop in ADR (-25.4 percent to $261.19),

caused the steepest decline in RevPAR (-39.8 percent to US$183.75).” The slide gathered pace the following week, 15-21 March, as the COVID-19 pandemic spread, cruise ships stopped sailing and the US started implementing travel bans on the likes of China and European nations to halt the outbreak. “The Bahamas saw the steepest year-over-year decline in demand (-72.7 percent). That led to the largest decline in occupancy (-72.7 percent to 22.1 percent), which coupled with

the largest drop in ADR (-19.5 percent to $292.58), caused the steepest decline in RevPAR (-78 percent to $64.67),” STR found. The rout was completed the following week as hotel closures and lay-offs began. “The Bahamas saw the steepest year-overyear decline in RevPAR (-95.2 percent to $12.99),” STR revealed. “That

was due to the region’s lowest absolute occupancy (-90.8 percent to 7.3 percent) and the largest drop in ADR (-47.8 percent to $177.39).” The Bahamas’ occupancies and other indicators plummeted much faster than the rest of the region. Puerto Rico’s occupancy declines came closest to matching The Bahamas in the last two weeks of March 2020, while

Barbados maintained occupancies above 50 percent for the first two weeks assessed by STR. Neither Dionisio D’Aguilar, minister of tourism and aviation, nor Carlton Russell, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s (BHTA) president, could be reached for comment yesterday on the STR report. Robert Sands, Baha Mar’s

senior vice-president of government and external affairs, declined to comment because he had not seen the STR data. With Bahamian hotel industry and Ministry of Tourism data not yet released, he added: “The general results for the month’s aggregates aren’t out. It’s going to be pretty early to determine that particular position.”

Food supply chain in lockdown ‘strain’ FROM PAGE ONE

usually a process before I get a loaf of bread to the store. “I have at least four to six hours of production time. I’m talking about mixing the bread and letting that bread that proof, and then going through the oven; letting the bread cool; bagging the bread and then now having to distribute the bread.” Mr Smith continued: “We’re putting bread out right now, and I am trying to work through the disruption as best as possible. But I would imagine that every manufacturer would be in a similar boat and they are trying to adjust their production schedules based on the constraints they have.” “There is plenty of product available. We just had to adjust our production schedule based on the protocols that have been established. Mr Smith reassured Bahamian consumers Purity Bakery was delivering bread to the market as of yesterday and will continue to do so. But he added: “As of next week we won’t be able to get into the bakery until Tuesday based on the restrictions from the prime minister. We have an exemption to operate right now as an essential service, but even the food stores won’t be open based on this new lock down, so we are just falling in line with the new protocols that have been established. “On Tuesday of next week we will have bread available by probably midday as opposed to Tuesday morning, because after we put the bread out at the end of Wednesday we won’t be able to get back in and firing up those ovens until Tuesday morning as opposed to Monday night. So remember we need a day to bake and a day to distribute.” The prime minister announced in Parliament yesterday that The Bahamas will go through a five-day lockdown over the Easter weekend starting on Wednesday night at 9pm and ending on Tuesday morning at 5am. The lockdowns will be repeated for every weekend in April, lasting from Friday night at

9pm to Monday morning at 5am. The end of the weekend shutdown, followed swiftly by the announcement of a new one, produced long lines at food stores, gas stations and water depots as Bahamians and residents raced to stock up ahead of Easter. Philip Beneby, president of the Retail Grocers Association, told Tribune Business yesterday that the government’s lockdowns will “put a strain on the supply chain without a doubt” as retailers will have to ensure all orders placed with wholesalers/importers this week are received before Wednesday evening. He added that the industry simply had to “find some way of working through it” and adjust strategies, especially given that yesterday’s curfew - which did not expire until 5am - meant wholesaler staff were unable to come in early and start picking orders for delivery to retailers as they normally would. “We are pulling from the in-house inventory right now seeing that Wednesday is going to be the last day for deliveries,” Mr Beneby said. “We have to see whatever we can get on from the wholesalers between now and Wednesday because for five days that’s it. If orders are placed and you don’t get them by Wednesday it means you will not get them until the following week Tuesday. “It is going to put a strain on the supply chain without a doubt. Even speaking with one of the other major warehouses after checking on one of our deliveries, they’re saying workers can’t come to work and start pulling the order before 5am. That slowed things up. “That takes a while before all the trucks are loaded and they hit the street. It does have a negative effect sometimes to the extent the supply chain needs to keep moving. For most large wholesale distributors they have early workers that come in and pull the orders so they can get out to the food stores early. They weren’t able to do that early this [yesterday] morning because of the 5am curfew.”

MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com

(242) 323-2330

MONDAY, 6 APRIL 2020

(242) 323-2320

ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE: 2,153.16 | CHG: 0.63 | %CHG: 0.03 | YTD: -78.44 | YTD%: -3.51 BISX LISTED & TRADED SECURITIES 52WK HI 4.45 22.65 7.00 6.70 2.60 2.00 5.47 12.77 6.17 4.50 10.60 3.64 5.10 10.88 8.15 16.99 9.40 4.24 15.21

52WK LOW 3.35 20.91 5.50 5.38 2.09 0.67 2.00 10.21 5.60 3.75 6.01 2.53 1.80 8.00 6.63 13.60 6.98 3.14 13.85

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

SYMBOL AML APD BPF BWL BOB BBL CAB CIB CHL CBL CBB CWCB DHS EMAB FAM FBB FIN FCL JSJ

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00

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

CAB6 CAB8 CAB9 CAB10 CHLA FBBA FCLB

PREFERENCE SHARES

1.00 10.00 1.00

CORPORATE DEBT - (percentage pricing) 52WK HI 100.00

52WK LOW 100.00

115.92 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

104.79 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

SECURITY Fidelity Bank Note 22 (Series B) +

SYMBOL FBB22

Bahamas Note 6.95 (2029) BGS: 2015-1-3Y BGS: 2014-12-5Y BGS: 2015-1-5Y BGS: 2014-12-7Y BGS: 2015-1-7Y BGS: 2014-12-30Y BGS: 2015-1-30Y BGS: 2015-6-3Y BGS: 2015-6-5Y BGS: 2015-6-7Y BGS: 2015-6-30Y BGS: 2015-10-3Y BGS: 2015-10-5Y BGS: 2015-10-7Y

BAH29 BG0203 BG0105 BG0205 BG0107 BG0207 BG0130 BG0230 BG0303 BG0305 BG0307 BG0330 BG0403 BG0405 BG0407

BAHAMAS GOVERNMENT STOCK - (percentage pricing)

LAST CLOSE 3.55 17.43 6.00 6.68 2.10 1.62 3.00 11.26 6.00 4.07 6.01 2.81 4.90 8.99 8.15 14.15 8.97 4.23 15.20

CLOSE 3.55 17.43 6.00 6.68 2.10 1.62 3.00 11.26 6.00 4.07 6.01 2.91 4.90 9.66 8.15 14.15 8.97 4.23 15.20

CHANGE 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.10 0.00 0.67 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00

0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

CLOSE 100.00

CHANGE 0.00

107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

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

LAST SALE 100.00 107.31 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00 100.00

VOLUME

500 2,500

2,500

VOLUME

EPS$ 0.239 0.932 1.760 0.369 0.070 0.000 -0.438 0.722 0.449 0.184 0.140 0.102 0.467 0.646 0.728 0.816 0.939 0.203 0.631

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

P/E 14.9 18.7 N/M 18.1 N/M N/M -6.8 15.6 13.4 22.1 42.9 28.5 10.5 15.0 11.2 17.3 9.6 20.8 24.1

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0

YIELD 4.79% 7.23% 0.00% 3.89% 0.00% 1.23% 0.00% 6.39% 3.67% 2.95% 0.00% 14.91% 1.22% 3.40% 2.94% 3.82% 2.23% 2.84% 4.01% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% 6.25% 7.00% 6.50%

INTEREST Prime + 1.75%

MATURITY 19-Oct-2022

6.95% 4.00% 4.25% 4.25% 4.50% 4.50% 6.25% 6.25% 4.00% 4.25% 4.50% 6.25% 3.50% 3.88% 4.25%

20-Nov-2029 30-Jul-2018 16-Dec-2019 30-Jul-2020 15-Dec-2021 30-Jul-2022 15-Dec-2044 30-Jul-2045 26-Jun-2018 26-Jun-2020 26-Jun-2022 26-Jun-2045 15-Oct-2018 15-Oct-2020 15-Oct-2022

YTD% 12 MTH% 0.37% 3.81% 0.24% 4.38% 0.23% 2.75% 5.76% 5.76% 12.81% 12.81% 0.58% 4.04% -1.09% 5.26% 0.22% 4.45% 2.29% 9.61% -0.32% 10.20% -1.58% 15.37% 0.88% 5.22% -4.91% 10.77% 1.89% 6.75% -1.95% 0.38% N/A N/A 10.80% 2.60% 10.40% -4.00%

NAV Date 31-Jan-2020 31-Jan-2020 31-Jan-2020 31-Dec-2019 31-Dec-2019 31-Jan-2020 31-Jan-2020 31-Jan-2020 31-Jan-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020 29-Feb-2020

MUTUAL FUNDS 52WK HI 2.30 4.38 2.09 195.13 166.73 1.67 1.83 1.76 1.23 8.34 10.26 7.00 12.15 12.58 10.81 10.00 8.98 11.79

52WK LOW 1.67 3.30 1.68 164.74 116.70 1.67 1.83 1.76 1.23 6.41 7.62 5.66 8.65 10.54 9.57 9.88 8.45 11.20

FUND CFAL Bond Fund CFAL Balanced Fund CFAL Money Market Fund CFAL Global Bond Fund CFAL Global Equity Fund Leno Preferred Income Fund Leno Growth Fund Leno Diversified Fund Leno Global USD Bond Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Secured Balanced Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Targeted Equity Fund Royal Fidelity Bahamas Opportunities Fund - Prime Income Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Equities Sub Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - High Yield Fund Royal Fidelity Int'l Fund - Alternative Strategies Fund Colonial Bahamas Fund Class D Colonial Bahamas Fund Class E Colonial Bahamas Fund Class F

NAV 2.30 4.38 2.09 195.13 166.73 1.67 1.83 1.76 1.23 8.31 10.07 7.00 11.42 12.58 10.52 N/A 8.98 11.40

MARKET TERMS

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

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 | COLONIAL 242-502-7525 | LENO 242-396-3225 | BENCHMARK 242-326-7333

30-Sep-2019 30-Sep-2019 30-Sep-2019

inside squares on the grid. Write you THE TRIBUNE blank squares in the direction indicate Sol

PAGE 6, Tuesday, April 7, 2020

wordSEarch

JUDGE PARKER

S E A N I L B U D B I S L J P

CARPE DIEM

Daily Express Monday, January 20, 2020

Puzzles

MARVIN BLONDIE

I T M N T B W T S E P A D U B

R J L O N E G A H N E P O C A

A P P M R E R L R D O P S B E

P M R Z O N I A J S W K T I I

V A L A E S C V L J A E I J Z

M D M I G S C O J U Y W C E F

L R J S S U N O D N O L L V V

O I Z H T B E W W K Q T Y O E

H D P E O E O S L E S S U R B

K M W R A K R N N E U C J E U

Find all the European capitals liste the grid. Solution tomorrow

CRUSADER PRIZE CROSSWORD

HAGAR

TIGER

acrOss 1 Left thin fluid after parking in base (6) 4 Shed the French manacles (8) 10 Contrition concerning code (7) 11 At university, finished getting turned over (7) 12 Chat about having one often dropped (5) 13 Article with hint does work? Quite the opposite (9) THE HORRIBLE 14 Transport table off to new church with energy and freedom (5,7) 18 Leather tyres used in private treatment area (6,6) 23 Cricket club gets alluring set of keys (9) 24 Ice cream includes large, exact copy (5) 25 The invention of money? (7) 26 Use evil design that’s hard to find (7) 27 Deviant for every bit of poetry (8) 28 Boy and girl get a cat (6)

CALVIN & HOBBES

1 2 3 DOWN 1 Language equalAMSTERDAM to a ● BERLIN ● BR 9 weapon (8) BUCHAREST ● BUDAPEST ● CO 2 Juvenile aim, playing DUBLIN around motorway – sadly ●10HELSINKI ● KIEV ● true (8) LONDON ● MADRID ● MOSCOW 3 Holy books found on hill – ● ROME ● ST gasp! (5) PARIS ● PRAGUE 12 13 5 Almost accommodate a VIENNA ● WARSAW great deal in city (7) 6 Shop involved in swindle gets unfair criticism (5,4) 14 15 7 Snobbish boy sent aid away (2-2-2) 8 Cruelty is mad, crazy, and 18 19 has succeeded (6) Quick wordSEarch 9 Minor feature of French 22 21 croSSword conclusion (6) H T L B R M A H P W 15 Complicated, getting the 23 C U T S U E E D R R across: Spanish sailor to speak (9) 4 Affable; 8 Opener; R R K J L S P O I R 16 Getting 9 toReverse; be attractive (8) 10 Napkin; A T E B T N A V I L 17 Point that way – a12lake 11 Unsure; Converge; M S M R H M C N E L that’s heavenly (8) 20 Urbane; 25 18 Dethrone; L A O S I C E S M S 19 Without21 a Bright; single 22 member Weather; getting 23 drunk (7) 24 Repress. M L A U K P R Y T T Virago; 20 Draw energy down:repeatedly L M Q L E E P R R F 27 for a federal soldier (6) 1 Connect; 2 Serpent; P K T Z V E Y I E E 21 Supporter of breakfast to 3 Refine; 5 Frequent; P A R A D E D O V A 6 Averse; Lustre; encourage award7(6) K Y R Z M E S O U V 13 Rudeness; 14 Congeal; 22 Weapon right on a jetty (6) Y T J W P F U N V J Festoon; 16 Grieve; 24 Channel15fire, say (5) E K Z A P E T R A I 17 Banter; 19 Hermit.

YESTERda

THE ALPHABEATE

L U G L U E T S H U Z R Q K R T U S B I

TARGET

Pum oPr ADo

● The Target uses words in the main body of Chambers 21st Century Dictionary (1999 edition)

cAn you crack the Alphabeater? Each gridalphap targEt thE Ext number represents a letter – or black square. 090 across: clipboard Misheard, Em As in Alphapuzzle, every letter of the alphabet (Dedu Clinker, Flair, baldBut baldric each eP isbail used. you bard have bardic to complete Legacy, the grid too! Ant, Crew, Known, Ela bipod bipolar bird biro blip bloc use given and black Squint,below Headline. boarthe board boilletters bold boric brad squares the to start. is ‘rotationally 090 down: Feckless, Ideal braidgrid bridal broadthe broilgrid carob symmetrical’ – in other words, the Oath, Chagrin *Calls c Excerpt, CLIPBOARD cobra crab crib drabit looks Awkward, Jackpot,your Wo same if youparboil turn the page upside down. drib lobar rabid ribald net Marzipan. Solution tomorrow

A 11 32 4 23 17 35 17 33 16 2 B C 24 39 5 36 24 14 3 22 27 2 D E 25 2 35 17 39 26 14 20 25 5 F G 9 12 35 29 23 17 30 14 37 3 H I 27 13 27 40 36 26 28 34 40 38 J TODAY’S TARGET Good 12; very good 18; excellent 24 K 31 12 1 30 33 7 25 17 3 2 (or more). Solution tomorrow L M 10 31 11 12 24 30 39 33 5 2 call 0907 181 2585 N for today’s target solution O 19 2 15 12 14 25 39 22 18 9 Best described as a number crossword, the task in Kakuro *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone P is to fill all of the empty squares, using numbers 1 to 9, so company’s network access charge. Q 30 12 29to its36 29 3 11 equals 20 32 block 4 horizontal the sum of each the number R the sum of each vertical block equals the number left, and 12be 36 10 may 38No28 on its Stop. number used 2 in the18 same18 block12 more23 than once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Kakuro T increases Monday 14 29 17 30 18 4 2 to8 Sunday. U 6 from26 FIND where the fleet of ships shown is hidden V in the grid. The numbers to the right of and 20 13 28 2 6 10 39 34 9 W 2 below the grid indicate how many of the squares in that row are filled in with ships or XYesterday’s Yesterday’s parts of ships. The ships do not touch each 23 12 33 35 2 Y 19 40 12 25 2 other, even diagonally. Some squares have Z Sudoku Answer Kakuro Answer HOW many words of four letters or more can you make from the letters shown here? in making a word, each letter may be used once only. Each must contain the centre letter and there must be at least one nine-letter word. no plurals or verb forms ending in “s”.

DENNIS THE MENACE Sudoku is a number-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers 1 to 9 in the empty squares so the each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. The difficulty level of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday

BATTLESHIPS

CRYPTIC PUZZLE 1 Being badly hid gets seen (7) 4 Enquire in the back street for jobs (5) 7 Back we come with an Irish boy maybe (4) 8 One absorbed in poetry and in painting (8) 10 They hold together news cuttings (5,5) 12 They are used once as a form of transport (6) 13 Holy commands? (6) 15 Extensive property (10) 18 A brief way to encourage a high-priced swimmer (8) 19 High flier subject to ground control (4)

4 0

1 2

to bed? (8)

12 They make up a meal from different sources (7) 14 Received a hero’s treatment when landed (6) 17 Sixth-century German invader renowned for sacking (4)

Yesterday’s Cryptic Solution

Yesterday’s Easy Solution

Across: 1 Considerate, 9 Ingenue, 10 Saint, 11 Gone, 12 Remember, 14 Euclid, 16 At rest, 18 Disciple, 19 Bell, 22 Raise, 23 Concise, 24 Predestined.

Across: 1 Cut and dried, 9 In short, 10 Train, 11 Hats, 12 Demolish, 14 Unsung, 16 Camera, 18 Skittish, 19 Idle, 22 Eerie, 23 Emerald, 24 Ups and downs. Down: 2 Upset, 3 Amok, 4 Dither, 5 Rational, 6 Evasive, 7 Sight unseen, 8 On the agenda, 13 Anathema, 15 Stirrup, 17 Ascend, 20 Drawn, 21 Zero.

Across 1 Northwest US state (7) 4 Puzzling question (5) 7 Incautious (4) 8 Form good relationship (3,2,3) 10 Law no longer observed (4,6)

Down 1 Universe (5) 2 Impediment (8) 3 Merriment (6) 4 Initiator of action (5,5) 5 Pack away tidily (4) 6 Ponder (7) 9 Payment to hired

12 Inexperienced (6)

killer (5,5)

13 Strive against (6)

11 Renounce

15 Superficial knowledge (10) 18 Fop (8)

4 x submarine

to go on (5,5) 11 Shy about going

2 x cruiser

9 It’s something

3 x Destroyer

broken his legs (7)

1 x Battleship

6 Vehicles are shown to have

9 10

5 Skid and get killed (4)

get seats on it? (5,5)

4 Does one have to fight to

of Dallas (6)

understanding? (8)

3 Lives well in the outskirts

16 Produce and deliver (5)

Down: 2 Organ, 3 Sand, 4 Diesel, 5 Rossetti, 6 Thimble, 7 Ringleaders, 8 Storyteller, 13 Dividend, 15 Cashier, 17 Slacks, 20 Elite, 21 Anti.

2 Mean to be

of fish (5) for a match? (7)

1 Clean up in the lottery (5)

20 Had the odour 21 Signed up in preparation

Down

EASY PUZZLE

Across

been filled in to start you off. Solution tomorrow

a throne (8) 12 Fast sailing ship (7)

19 Fixed look (4)

14 Run aground (6)

20 Excessively fluid (5)

16 An invited visitor (5)

21 Lineage (7)

17 Whirl (4)

30 31

34 35

■■

■

F C

● Alternatively, for six Extra Letter clues to you text DXBEAT to 84901. Texts cost £1 plus your usua

WORD BUILDER Answer the clues so that each word contains the same letters as the previous word, plus or minus one.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Soluti

1 H

2 F

3 P

4 e

5 F

6 D

7 H

THE TRIBUNE

Tuesday, April 7, 2020, PAGE 9

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-Day Forecast

TODAY

ORLANDO

High: 88° F/31° C Low: 68° F/20° C

TAMPA

TONIGHT

WEDNESDAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

Some sun with a couple of showers

Some clouds around

Comfortable with brilliant sunshine

Sunshine and humid

Mostly sunny and humid

High: 82°

Low: 71°

High: 83° Low: 72°

High: 85° Low: 72°

High: 86° Low: 72°

High: 84° Low: 72°

AccuWeather RealFeel

87° F

74° F

91°-77° F

94°-77° F

96°-78° F

94°-75° F

High: 87° F/31° C Low: 69° F/21° C

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

ABACO

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 74° F/23° C

8-16 knots

WEST PALM BEACH High: 84° F/29° C Low: 72° F/22° C

7-14 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE E

FREEPORT

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 73° F/23° C

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 72° F/22° C

MIAMI

High: 86° F/30° C Low: 75° F/24° C

4-8 knots

Statistics are for Nassau through 2 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 75° F/24° C Low .................................................... 72° F/22° C Normal high ....................................... 80° F/27° C Normal low ........................................ 68° F/20° C Last year’s high ................................. 86° F/30° C Last year’s low ................................... 76° F/25° C Precipitation As of 2 p.m. yesterday .................................. trace Year to date ................................................. 1.73” Normal year to date ..................................... 4.89”

ELEUTHERA

NASSAU

High: 82° F/28° C Low: 71° F/22° C

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 74° F/23° C

KEY WEST

High: 84° F/29° C Low: 74° F/23° C

tiDes For nassau High Today

W S

7-14 knots

Low

Ht.(ft.)

3.2 3.4

1:44 a.m. -0.7 2:08 p.m. -0.8

Wednesday 8:41 a.m. 9:09 p.m.

3.2 3.5

2:38 a.m. -0.9 2:55 p.m. -1.0

Thursday

9:31 a.m. 9:59 p.m.

3.1 3.5

3:31 a.m. -0.9 3:43 p.m. -1.0

Friday

10:21 a.m. 10:51 p.m.

2.9 3.4

4:24 a.m. -0.8 4:31 p.m. -0.8

Saturday

11:13 a.m. 11:44 p.m.

2.7 3.2

5:18 a.m. -0.6 5:22 p.m. -0.6

Sunday

12:07 p.m. -----

2.5 -----

6:14 a.m. -0.3 6:15 p.m. -0.3

Monday

12:40 a.m. 1:06 p.m.

3.0 2.3

7:13 a.m. 7:13 p.m.

0.0 0.0

sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset

6:55 a.m. 7:29 p.m.

Moonrise Moonset

7:18 p.m. 6:47 a.m.

Full

Last

New

First

Apr. 7

Apr. 14

Apr. 22

Apr. 30

ANDROS

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 73° F/23° C

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 74° F/23° C

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

W S

LONG ISLAND

tracking map

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 74° F/23° C

7-14 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 80° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

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

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS RAGGED ISLAND High: 80° F/27° C Low: 75° F/24° C

Ht.(ft.)

7:51 a.m. 8:18 p.m.

High: 78° F/26° C Low: 74° F/23° C

8-16 knots

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.

CAT ISLAND

uV inDex toDay

GREAT INAGUA High: 82° F/28° C Low: 75° F/24° C

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 75° F/24° C

8-16 knots

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

Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday: Today: Wednesday:

WINDS SE at 7-14 Knots SW at 10-20 Knots SE at 8-16 Knots SSW at 6-12 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots SSE at 7-14 Knots E at 7-14 Knots ESE at 6-12 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots S at 8-16 Knots ESE at 8-16 Knots WSW at 8-16 Knots SE at 7-14 Knots S at 6-12 Knots E at 8-16 Knots E at 6-12 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots SE at 6-12 Knots ENE at 7-14 Knots ESE at 6-12 Knots SE at 8-16 Knots S at 8-16 Knots E at 8-16 Knots ESE at 7-14 Knots SE at 7-14 Knots S at 7-14 Knots

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

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VISIBILITY 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 7 Miles 7 Miles 7 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 6 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 76° F 77° F 81° F 82° F 73° F 73° F 79° F 79° F 77° F 77° F 75° F 74° F 79° F 79° F 79° F 79° F 79° F 79° F 78° F 78° F 78° F 78° F 79° F 79° F 75° F 74° F