04082020 BUSINESS

business@tribunemedia.net

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2020

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Cable lays-off 100 on top client uncertainty

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

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ABLE Bahamas yesterday confirmed the temporary layoff of almost 100 staff as its top executive revealed that major corporate clients are warning “daily” they may stop using its services.

Franklyn Butler, the BISX-listed communications provider’s chief executive, told Tribune Business that the likes of hotels, web shops and liquor stores were repeatedly sounding the alarm that they will not be Cable Bahamas customers “if the emergency

• Major accounts warn ‘daily’ on disconnection • Top executive: Survival key in unknown future • John Bull also moves on temporary lay-offs

FRANKLYN BUTLER

orders extend much longer”.

Confirming that the lay-offs were designed to prepare Cable Bahamas and its affiliates for a post-COVID-19 future, Mr Butler said the group’s action had primarily impacted workers employed at now-closed retail stores operated by itself and the Aliv mobile provider. Sales teams were also affected as Cable Bahamas moved to ensure its survival amid the loss of

major income-generating clients.

The move, which involves 76 Cable Bahamas employees and 20 at Aliv, was announced as Tribune Business learned that John Bull, the luxury goods market leader, had informed hundreds of staff that it will also be temporarily laying them off with all store locations closed amid the pandemic lockdown.

SEE PAGE 4

What’s the ‘game plan’ for economic revival?

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE government must “come up with a game plan” for bringing The Bahamas out of COVID-19 lockdown and kickstarting economic recovery, a governance reformer urged yesterday.

Robert Myers, the Organisation for Responsible Governance’s (ORG) principal, told Tribune Business that the government needed to lift its head from the immediate health crisis to communicate a strategy for social and economic revival once the pandemic threat had passed.

Warning that The Bahamas would immediately be threatened by other crises in COVID-19s immediate aftermath, Mr Myers said the government needed to bring both the private

• ORG chief: Business, citizns need timeline • ‘Freaking out’, ‘on pins and needles’ with uncertainty

ROBERT MYERS sector and ordinary citizens on board and give them an understanding of when business and daily life will start to open back up.

He added that all were “freaking out”, and “on pins and needles”, over continued near and mid-term uncertainty that could be

Super Value chief targets six months of food inventory

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net SUPER Value’s principal yesterday revealed he is seeking to build six months’ worth of food inventories as he branded the extended shopping hours as a “relief” for both merchants and consumers.

Rupert Roberts voiced optimism to Tribune Business that the extension to 10pm will “work a lot better” and reduce the mammoth lines experienced by all New Providence food stores as Bahamians and residents raced to stock up ahead of the five-day Easter

weekend lockdown.

Acknowledging that no rule book existed for managing the COVID-19 pandemic, Mr Roberts suggested that the government had realised its shopping schedule had “squeezed it to tight for consumers to get in and get out with what they need”.

“It’s a relief to extend the hours. It’s a relief for us and relief for the consumer,” he told this newspaper. “By and large the public have co-operated, but the ones that don’t, the shorter hours cause them to have disrespect or a disregard for the social distancing.

SEE PAGE 5

Co-ordinate for up to 3,500 COVID-19 masks every week

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net SEAMSTRESSES and tailors yesterday said they can produce between 1,000 and 3,500 COVID-19 face masks per week with better government co-ordination.

Phylicia Ellis, a fashion designer and seamstress, told Tribune Business: “I listened to the prime minister’s presentation briefly, and from what I gathered they want to initiate and put money into the small businesses. By him directing money to small businesses, those small businesses can go on and hire people

to help create those face masks.

“With that being said it is good that they are taking this seriously, and they want to make moves with this initiative. But we have to ask ourselves: By the government making this move and pivoting in this direction, are we doing it just for doing it sake, or are we doing it because it makes sense?”

Ms Ellis said her mask production depends on multiple variables, but she added: It depends on how many sewing machines I have at my disposal, and how many extra hands I will

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eased if the Minnis administration collaborated with all stakeholders on a likely timeline and strategy for returning The Bahamas to some semblance of normality.

“I’d love to have greater depth on what the government is thinking,” the ORG chief told this newspaper.

“We’ve heard a lot about the current situation but nothing with regard to how we get ourselves out of this thing.

“What is the mid-term and long-term? Right now we don’t fully understand the short-term plan. It would be nice to hear more on that from the Prime Minister rather than what we’re shutting down, or that we’re on

lockdown and quarantine.

“We can’t make any real plans or contingency plans until we have a better understanding from the government on what is going on... It’s time the government collaborated and communicated with the people in business and the citizens of The Bahamas to create a better understanding.”

Mr Myers spoke out after Carl Bethel QC, the attorney general, suggested in the Senate on Monday night that the government was seeking to open the domestic, non-tourism sectors of the Bahamian economy within two to two-and-a-half

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Commission faces battle over broker’s winding-up

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A FORMER Bahamian broker/dealer yesterday pledged to fight the Securities Commission’s bid to place it in courtsupervised liquidation over concerns it asserts are “completely baseless”.

Guy Gentile, principal of Mint Broker International, told Tribune Business he still wanted “my day in court” to challenge actions by the regulator that had “put us out of business” without due justification and cost up to 70 Bahamian jobs in doing so.

The Securities Commission, though, has already persuaded the Supreme Court to approve Bahamasbased EY (Ernst & Young) associate partner, Igal Wizman, and his Caymanbased counterpart, Eleanor Fisher, as joint provisional liquidators for Mint Broker International (formerly named Swiss America Securities).

Justice Ian Winder’s Order, dated March 19, permits the EY duo to take control of all Mint Broker International’s assets, property and documents. It has also set May 19, 2020, as the date when Mr Gentile can seek to overturn the Order and Securities Commission action - at a full hearing on the latter’s winding-up petition. Should he fail, what remains of Mint Broker will be placed in court-supervised liquidation.

Documents filed by the Securities Commission in support of the winding-up allege that it was motivated to take this action because Mint Broker is currently “non-operational” and had failed to comply with the requirements set by the regulator for its voluntary dissolution.

As a result, with Mint Broker’s registration suspended, the Securities

Commission argued that the provisional liquidators’ appointment was essential to protecting “the welfare of investors and/or clients”.

Christina Rolle, the Securities Commission’s executive director, alleged in the winding-up petition that Mr Gentile and Mint Broker had breached the Securities Industry’s Act’s section 73 through their “unilateral decision to voluntarily wind-up” the broker/dealer that was formerly based at Bay Street’s Elizabeth on Bay plaza.

She argued that the law requires Securities Commission licensees to seek the regulator’s approval for doing this, and multiple letters were sent to Mr Gentile and his business warning that “conditions” would be imposed for taking this course of action.

These “conditions” included a complete transaction history involving the brokerage accounts that Mint Broker held with its main clearing house/ counterparty; a “full reconciliation” of all client accounts from the period dating from June 1, 2019, to closure; the provision of outstanding audited financial statements for 2017 and 2018; and “a detailed plan” for winding-up operations.

These were supposed to have been submitted by 2019 year-end, but Ms Rolle alleged: “To-date, despite the numerous requests from the Commission, Swiss America (Mint Broker) has failed again to comply with and/or provide all the requested information.

“By its letter dated February 4, 2020, the Commission formally advised Swiss America that by reason of its failure to provide all required information - and Swiss America’s current nonoperational status - the

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PAGE 2, Wednesday, April 8, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Business continuity - from novel idea to vital strategy

BY DEREK SMITH JR

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USINESS continuity plans (BCP) seemed a novel idea only months ago for many businesses. Most felt that disaster recovery plans geared towards managing the impacts of hurricanes were sufficient.

However, COVID-19 has proven that many business owners and operators have fallen short in their preparations.

Don not be alarmed. If you have not heard the acronym “BCP” before, it

is simply a strategic management process aimed at minimising the social and economic fall-out for a company due to disruptions in normal business activities. The lack of preparation was exposed by the depleted lap-top inventory in many of the approved technology vendors in anticipation of imminent curfews and lockdowns.

For the financial services industry, BCPs are mandated after the September11 attacks. BCP

guidelines were issued locally by the Central Bank of The Bahamas (CBOB) more than a decade ago; first in 2007 and then revised in 2008. The Central Bank explained at the time that “these guidelines were released to assist in improving the safety and soundness of licensees by allowing them to better manage disasters”.

The reality is simple.

Businesses must rethink their BCPs or risk being dramatically impacted or,

worse, becomimng insolvent. Business owners must ask themselves several key questions: 1. Have we conducted adequate risk assessments to appreciate the vulnerabilities and threats to our most critical resources and activities?

2. Have we identified BCP leads and teams?

3. Have we identified, documented, and socialised the BCP with key stakeholders, as well as tested it?

4. Have we conducted training for the business continuity teams?

5. Have we reviewed and updated our crisis communications toolkits?

The COVID-19 pandemic will continue to test BCPs, and business leaders cannot afford to wait to plan, but instead must constantly assess, adapt and act: 1. Assess which aspects of their plans are working, and which need to be tweaked.

2. Adapt to unconventional forms of doing business to minimise revenue loss and additional expenses.

3. Act decisively while always considering and balancing their employees’ well-being with operational realities.

Throughout this series, I will address key aspects of a robust BCP, including how to develop a BCP; identifying what internal and external factors should be considered in its implementation; and corporate governance surrounding BCPs. NB: Derek Smith Jr is a compliance officer at a leading law firm in The

Bahamas, and a former assistant vice-president, compliance and money laundering reporting officer (MLRO), at local private bank. His professional career started at a ‘Big Four’ accounting firm and has spanned over 15 years, including business risk management, compliance, internal audit, external audit and other accounting services. He is also a CAMS member of the Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS).

Co-ordinate for up to 3,500 COVID-19 masks every week FROM PAGE ONE have at my disposal. Based off of how my company is set up right now, we can probably knock out 1,000 masks in two days.”

While not “knocking” anyone existing face mask producers, she added: “I have seen some things posted on social media of various different types of masks, and a lot of persons aren’t taking into consideration a lot of things.

“We just don’t want to do something for the sake of doing it, and we want to make sure that we are getting the right material for making these masks because anybody can grab some fabric and create a mask, but will it be effective?”

Ms Ellis continued: “To meet the regulations there is a specific type of medical grade material to make medical masks. That material has a three-layer fibre with it that keeps out 95 percent of the things in the air.

“We went and looked online, and you can’t find that stuff on the global market. The only place that is selling them is a place out of Massachusetts, and there is one out of Germany and another out of China. But because the global demand for it now is so large, it is hard getting that material and also very expensive.

They are selling the material by the tonne, and honestly they are reserving it for big manufacturing companies and governments.”

“It is a good thing that he [the prime minister] has decided to direct money towards the small businesses to help with these masks, but what would have been better is if the minister of health, or the prime minister, actually reached out to one of these manufacturing companies, and if the government had the ability to source the raw materials and purchase that in bulk, then distribute it to the various seamstresses and fashion designers and everyone on the island who can use a sewing machine,” Ms Ellis said.

“That would be a better effort, and would assist us more than giving money to a group of persons and saying ‘make this mask’, because by doing that you don’t really have a lot of regulations and you don’t have a lot of oversight.

“You are allowing persons to work in their own little lane, and they are doing what they want to do. To be honest, some persons and their conditions are not that sanitary, and when you are preparing these masks because these are going on the frontline for our healthcare workers - you need to

ensure that it is a safe and sanitary environment.

“I recommend that the government source the material, find the warehouse - as there are many warehouses in The Bahamas - and source the sewing machines, and gather all of the fashion designers and all of the seamstresses on the island, and bring them together and let us get this working,” Ms Ellis said.

“We need to all band together. The minister of health has been doing an amazing job in trying to get in front of this, but we ask him to take it one step forward and source the raw material. Bring it into the country in bulk and get persons to make the masks, but don’t go giving money to this one and that one.

It would be a better use of the country’s resources to direct the money into one big pool rather than distributing money to individual persons.”

Oscar Cerna, another local tailor, told Tribune Business: “It’s OK. We don’t have any elastics here.

I need elastics and I have some fabric. I can make mass production. I can make 1,000 masks in one week.

I was trying to talk to the prime minister because we can set up something for The Bahamas as we need a lot.”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 8, 2020, PAGE 3

Extended hours provoke mixed food store reaction

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net FOOD store operators yesterday had mixed reactions to the government’s decision to extend shopping hours to 10pm ahead of the Easter lockdown in a bid to ease long customer lines.

Bradley Rolle, Centreville Food Market’s general manager, told Tribune Business: “Well, for today (Tuesday) and Wednesday I guess what that probably will do is help out with the traffic during the morning because people flock the food stores during the morning.

“But the extension of the hours for today and Wednesday would ease the traffic a bit because it has been extremely busy. For Thursday, I think it is just for essential services workers, and I think they are split between the Royal Bahamas Police Force and then other essential services. I don’t think it is open to the general public.”

The prime minister unveiled the extension of food shopping hours until 10pm yesterday and today in a bid to alleviate the long queues that, in some instances, extended all the way out of store and plaza parking lots into nearby streets. Maintaining social distancing protocols had also become increasingly difficult at some stores as shoppers pressed to get inside.

Essential workers only will also be allowed to shop between 6am and 10pm this Thursday. Health professionals, and members of

the Royal Bahamas Police Force and the Royal Bahamas Defence Force, will be able to shop from 6am to 12pm on that day.

From 12pm to 10pm, other essential workers may shop, including corrections officers, NIB staff, social services personnel, environmental health services, immigration, customs, waste disposal and sanitation companies.

Essential workers of core utilities, such as water and electricity, or any other sector including electronic communications and print media, may also shop from 12pm to 10pm on Thursday.

Mr Rolle added: “For today (Tuesday) and Wednesday, opening until 10pm would help a bit. But I will tell you one thing: For the people shopping yesterday and today, these people are shopping for five days, so when next week Tuesday morning comes we are going to be back to the same thing again with an exorbitant amount of cars on the road and people lined up at the food stores again.

“They would have depleted what they have purchased between yesterday and today. This is a wait and see game, and it looks like it won’t stop until we get past COVID-19. I guess they are trying their best to see how they can get people to stay home, but we just have to wait and see.”

The prime minister also confirmed that pharmacies will be allowed to open between 9am and 3pm on Thursday, while wholesale bakeries and water producers will be permitted to

operate during the Easter lockdown to ensure the availability of their products when food stores re-open next Tuesday.

Dr Hubert Minnis had initially announced plans to lockdown the entire Bahamas to counter COVID-19’s spread from 9pm today until 5am on Tuesday. The altered food store shopping hours represent a major change, but questions immediately arise as to how late shoppers and food store staff will be able to comply given the extended opening hours until 10pm tonight - one hour beyond the lockdown.

Norman Chea, general manager of John Chea No.5 on Boyd Road, said of the changes: “I think in these times there is obviously some mixed reaction.

The thing is people really do need the product for their houses because you are talking about a week’s worth of supply, but on the other side our workers that we have working with us, there is a concern for them because they may burn out working until 10pm. It is just trying to balance our work life while also helping others in this time of need.

“I think it is a good call, but it is hard on the frontline workers like us, and also the health industry - from the doctors to the EMTs (emergency medical technicians). We normally close at 7pm, but I have to talk to my staff to see if we can stay until 10pm. It is not about staying open for business; it is about our people.

Our staff is important as well.”

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Gas retailers struggle amid COVID-19 rush

By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN gas station operators yesterday said they were struggling to cope with a COVID-19-inspired demand surge that they compared to pre-hurricane preparations.

Vasco Bastian, the Esso station owner at East Street and Soldier Road, told Tribune Business: “We can’t cope. We have had issues in the petroleum business for several years, and this lockdown does not made it any easier for us.

“There has been an influx in customers coming in, which is always good and we welcome customers, but the overall picture in the oil industry on the whole is particularly with the retailers - they have always struggled in this business. You have to be able to keep your head above water. As I said earlier we appreciate the business, but it is a challenge - and a challenge across the board.

I speak for everybody in the business.”

Mr Bastian said electricity costs have “skyrocketed” over the past several years, and added: “We have the high cost of electricity running a 24-hour, seven days a week operation like a gas station. Every pump, every cooler, every cash register, every air hose all runs on electricity.

“The oil market has been fluctuating, and people have to understand that with the price of oil, when it fluctuates and it goes up, you would incur a debt associated with the cost of that fuel. When it goes down you would still be left with that same debt that you would have incurred when that price of fuel went up.

As an example, Mr Bastian added: “If you were to buy something for $1 and it goes up to $1.75, and then it goes down to $1.25, you would have lost that 50 cents you would have gained in your cost. How do you offset that when your costs went from $1 to $1.75, and then it goes back down to $1.25.”

“As far as the COVID-19 sales, it has been steady and it is similar to a hurricane rush. Our customers are coming in and they are finding the basic essentials that they need here, and a lot of persons are buying gas and diesel for the various generators anticipating that there may be a power outage at some point.”

However, Mr Bastian added that “business has not

been something that I would write home to my Grammy about. It has been steady and we appreciate the business”.

He also called for better communication between the government and the petroleum retailers over the hours during which the latter were allowed to open during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“For example, we closed on Monday at 1pm and we were told that we could have stayed open until 5pm,” he said. “The previous lockdown we closed at 5pm, but there was miscommunication between the government and the retailers as a whole with regard to Monday.

“Other than that we have been not happy, because we have seen a 50 percent to 60 percent fall-off in sales.

How do we regain and bounce back from a 60 percent reduction in sales within the next couple of weeks or months when the price of gas is regulated by the government of the day. So we will be looking to the government of the day for relief. At least my company will be looking for relief.

“What type of assistance would the government give my staff during the lockdown period? What relief would the government give me as a businessman with regard to my VAT payment, in regard to my business license that I have already paid? How could we get some credit on that?”

Mr Bastian also gave a bleak outlook for the Bahamian economy over the next eight months, adding: “This global economic shutdown will have a significant impact on business people in this country for at least six to eight months.

“We have already finished the first quarter of 2020.

We are in the beginning of the second quarter. We will need at least three to four months to take us into the beginning of the third quarter. September to October is already a slow month for business and the economy in general, and then we go right into Christmas. I don’t

see this economy recovering until late 2020 or January or February of 2021.”

Mr Bastian continued: “No one anticipated this, and my first priority is the well-being of the Bahamian people. Yes, I want to make a profit as a business person, but my first objective as a business person is to make sure that my staff and the Bahamian people, my customers, are safe and they’re healthy because if they are not safe and they’re not healthy then I do not have a business because I need them to help fuel my business.

“This is devastating for me, and it is devastating for the Bahamian people. We need to put all hands on deck going forward if this happens again. There is no comparison to this, there is no comparison. With hurricanes in The Bahamas, we know they are coming, we plan for them accordingly to the best of our ability, but this came like a man getting ready to go to the church to get married and all of a sudden the bride isn’t there and there is nobody in the church.

“We have 60 percent of our sales reduced across the industry as a result of this COVID-19. I have 30 employees here that have to be paid, and those 30 staff have families. We look at the multiplier effect, indirectly I employ 90 people, and some of our employees are on minimum wage and some are not.”

Zhivago Beckles, general manager of Shell Golden Gates, added: “We have a great number of staff and we have been able to cope thus far. We have not seen anything unusual, not more than the ordinary or unexpected as a result of the customer frenzy, because we have dealt with this type of situation before during hurricane season.

“We are able to handle these types of situations before. We have definitely seen these types of situations before.”

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PAGE 4, Wednesday, April 8, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Commission faces battle over broker’s winding-up FROM PAGE ONE commission will immediately suspend and the registration of Swiss America and seek a courtsupervised winding-up to ensure the protection of Swiss America’s clients, investors and creditors in the winding-up process.

“It is paramount that the commission protect the welfare of investors and/or clients as well as to maintain the integrity of The Bahamas’ securities and investment markets.

Therefore, the Securities Commission seeks orders to prevent any further harm to Swiss America’s clients.”

The battle between Mr Gentile on one side, and Ms Rolle and the Securities Commission on the other, has also become increasingly bitter and personal.

The Mint Broker chief, in a December 3, 2019, letter to the regulator made clear his belief that he was unjustly being singled out.

This provoked a withering response from Ms Rolle eight days later, warning that his letter “contains grossly inaccurate and defamatory material - all of which is strongly rejected by the commission” and had been referred to its

attorneys for possible legal action.

“Without prejudice to further points of objection to be forthcoming by the commission, the commission categorically rejects your statements attributing to it, its management or its staff any mal-intent, bias or abuse of power in any form or manner against Swiss America and/or its employees and directors,” Ms Rolle wrote.

Mr Gentile, though, maintained that theme in an interview with Tribune Business yesterday. He said that while Mint Broker had ceased operating, the company had not been dissolved to enable him to take retaliatory legal action against the Securities Commission.

“I’m going to be challenging that,” he asserted over the winding-up petition and appointment of provisional liquidators.

“Today I still have not had my day in court to fight allegations that are completely baseless. They’ve been made with no proof whatsoever. That’s why I was so easily able to get the original injunction from that Supreme Court.”

That mid-September 2019 injunction, obtained

by Philip Davis QC, the opposition leader on Mr

Gentile/Mint Broker’s behalf, overturned the Securities Commission’s five-day suspension of its licence and gave it permission to launch Judicial Review proceedings over the regulator’s actions.

Ms Rolle admitted that the injunction, granted by Justice Ruth Bowe-Darville, had “fully disabled” the Securities Commission’s probe into Mint Broker’s business operations. And Mr Gentile yesterday questioned why, with the injunction still in place, the Securities Commission had now sought to press forward with a winding-up petition before a different Supreme Court judge.

“What’s the basis for a liquidation?” he asked. “We didn’t go out of business because we were insolvent. We don’t have any assets. We don’t have any creditors. Mint Broker was closed down five months ago. We wound down the company already, but I kept it open because we believe the Securities Commission is liable for damages for shutting us down for five days to begin with.

“I intend to see it through for suspending is in the beginning, which was improperly done.... I’m willing to see this through

to prove they are liable for destroying the firm.

I’m not the bad guy here. I was employing many, many people, and the Securities Commission was trying to use what happened to me in the past to get me out of the business.”

That likely refers to Mr Gentile’s previous role as a Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) informant, in which he allegedly helped it uncover and arrest several share-trading scammers and con artists, plus several legal actions launched against him by the Securities Commission’s US counterpart, the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).

The Bahamian regulator had previously described Mint Broker’s business model as “akin to a Ponzi scheme”, with client funds being diverted without their knowledge to an unregistered affiliate in Canada. It also alleged that clients were unaware that so-called “referral” fees were being charged by a UK affiliate.

Mr Gentile, though, said these claims were “the furthest thing from the truth”. Asserting that the Bahamian regulator had long known of its business model, and never voiced

concerns until last year, he added that the UK affiliate was properly registered in that country with clients clearing through the local company here.

“There were no fees ever being paid, and it’s not true that clients did not know about it because they opened accounts through the UK firm. Of course they knew about it,” Mr Gentile asserted. He also denied Ms Rolle’s assertions that client monies were to be moved to Mint Broker’s operational account with Deltec Bank & Trust, saying this never happened.

Mr Gentile also asserted that it was “impossible to trade in a Ponzi scheme manner”, adding that the Securities Commission’s five-day suspension had threatened to undermine confidence in Mint Broker because its clients were day traders who needed constant access to their positions.

“The bottom line here is that 70 people have lost their jobs,” Mr Gentile argued. “I still have my New York firm, in business since 1999, doing the same business that Mint Broker/Sure Trader does. If it was illegal I’m sure the SEC would have shut me down.

“I really, really love The Bahamas. There’s a reason I chose The Bahamas. I love the people, the economy.

That’s why I was there. I spent $2m putting Sushi Bar restaurant there. It was there for three years. It was a bad traffic area, but still employed 70 people. I own property there, and spent money there.

“I was paying $2m a year in salaries, and $2m between audits and commission fees.

I gave between $200,000 to $300,000 to charities.

I would love to bring my company back there with 100 jobs that are COVID-19 ready,” he continued.

“Our firm was a thousand times’ over-capitalised.

It’s crazy that the commission alleges customers were being defrauded without there being any customer complaints. It’s sad, and I feel bad for everyone working at Sure Trader. They lost their job, had a good working environment, were smart-skilled people and are now out of a job.

“Now they have a talent they can’t use and I feel bad for them because The Bahamas is going to see a lot of lay-offs. People are not going to jump on a cruise ship, jump on a flight to come to The Bahamas tomorrow.”

Cable lays-off 100 on top client uncertainty FROM PAGE ONE Well-placed sources said John Bull workers were informed on Monday that they will receive their full pay for March, and 50 percent of what is due for April, with the National Insurance Board (NIB) to step in with benefits payments after that.

Tribune Business was also informed that the hotel/ restaurant shutdown has sparked temporary downsizing for at least one major wholesaler due to the loss of this lucrative business, although this newspaper is withholding the name because this could not be confirmed before press time.

These moves, though, show how corporate giants in the Bahamian context are not immune from the pandemic fall-out.

Mr Butler, meanwhile, acknowledged that the Cable Bahamas/Aliv layoffs amounted to nearly one out of every seven employees as the ripple effects from the tourism shutdown and subsequent national lockdown - start to be felt throughout the wider Bahamian economy.

“We don’t have any retail stores open at all between ourselves and Aliv,” he told Tribune Business. “We have a lot of foot soldiers in our business. We tried to deploy them to contact centres as the first port of call, and moved them in there on both ends of the business to try and keep people employed as best we can, but we couldn’t move everyone in there.

THE CABLE BAHAMAS HEADQUARTERS “There were a couple of smaller areas impacted, but that’s where we had the most additional capacity: It was mainly retail and sales.” Cable Bahamas, in a statement issued yesterday, said the possibility of “imminent serious downsizing measures” had been flagged to both staff, and Dion Foulkes, minister of labour, some two weeks ago on March 23.

Revealing that COVID19 and the subsequent recession will have a “significant enough” impact on Cable Bahamas’ revenues, Mr Butler added: “Everybody would appreciate that the hotels, gaming houses and everyone else that is impacted by COVID-19 and the emergency orders - the liquor stores and those kind

of customers - that will have a large impact on the commercial business.

“A lot of those guys are hedging, adjusting for short-term disruption, and advising that if the emergency orders extend much longer they will have to disconnect services. That’s a daily conversation I’m having with customers.

That’s the reality of where we find ourselves as a country at this stage.

“This is unprecedented.

We don’t know what the future holds. We’ve been trying to keep an eye on the future as well, and we thought the best thing to do given the uncertainty is to allow for these folks.

We are going to be supplementing any contribution from NIB with an additional

$400 per pay period which is every two weeks,” the Cable Bahamas chief continued.

“We’re trying to do the right thing to make sure the business can adjust, rightsize and be sustainable while also taking care of our people. It was a tough one for us. This has been a very difficult decision to make both for myself and the executive leadership team, but it is necessary in order for us to meet the demands of the business both now and in the future.”

Cable Bahamas will act as a payment agent on the National Insurance Board’s (NIB) behalf to ensure the 12 weeks’ unemployment benefit is paid to staff directly via their bank accounts. It will also continue to cover health

insurance costs for those temporarily laid-off, as well as both its and their contribution to the group pension plan.

The BISX-listed firm’s executive team have also taken varying pay cuts over the lay-off period to ensure $200,000 can be placed into an “employee fund” that will finance the $400 per pay period supplementary benefits payment to staff.

Mr Butler yesterday added that persons should not connect the $301.5m proceeds received from selling the US subsidiary, Summit Broadband, to the temporary lay-offs. The sale, he added, closed before the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, and the proceeds had already been earmarked for the much-needed restructuring of Cable Bahamas’ balance sheet and paying down its $468m debt.

Asked how well-placed Cable Bahamas is to cope with a post-COVID-19 world, Mr Butler replied: “I think we’re pretty strong.

I have some very brilliant colleagues on the team who even now are finding creative new sources of revenue, but that takes time.

“I’m convinced I lead the best team of employees in The Bahamas, and have no doubt that with their support we’ll get through. The internal comments have been very positive, and I’ve been very open and transparent with the team. We’ll be ready for a very bright future for us again.”

However, Damian Blackburn, Aliv’s top executive, told Tribune Business that

30 persons at the mobile operator had been impacted rather than the 20 noted by Cable Bahamas. Besides the 20 temporary lay-offs, a further ten had departed on the sales side.

“We’ve successfully redeployed over 50 of the sales team to do business continuity activities,” he added, “taking and making calls to customers as we try to encourage them to use social distancing appropriate methods to pay and top-up via the MyAliv app.

“We’ve redeployed people to do that, and to provide the concierge sales service with assistance for replacing handsets, SIM cards and Wi-Fi. We have managed to re-orientate the business and retain the services of 50 team members who have adapted to serving customers in a unique way from what they were doing at sales levels.”

However, Mr Blackburn added: “Nobody should be under any illusions that the emergency powers that have had to be enacted by the government, and rightly so to stop the spread of the virus, will have a drastic impact on the business’ ability to generate the same revenues as when working normally.

“It doesn’t take a genius to work out if the stores are closed where our customers’ pay for their plans and topups that has an impact on our business. The impact of this is changing every day, and we monitor it closely and do everything we have to to keep customers connected.”

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 8, 2020, PAGE 5

What’s the ‘game plan’ for economic revival?

FROM PAGE ONE

A SUPERVALUE FOOD STORE

Super Value chief targets six months of food inventory FROM PAGE ONE “I think three more hours per day makes it nine more hours, which is another day for the week that the government has given them to shop and us to serve them so it will work out a lot better.

It’s a crisis and we’ve lost the text book for this one. We’re going to make mistakes, but once we make them we have to correct them and let’s hope we get it right.”

The government earlier this week launched its “shopping schedule” as the latest tool in its fight to prevent the COVID-19 virus spreading throughout The Bahamas. This meant Bahamian households had to designate a specific shopper who could only go to the food store at certain times during the week based on their last name.

This, coupled with just the three shopping days provided this week ahead of the five-day Easter lockdown, created chaos and huge lines stretching out of food store parking lots as Bahamians rushed to stock up. To alleviate this, the government has extended food store shopping hours to 10pm yesterday and today, with essential workers to shop on Thursday.

Mr Roberts yesterday said the frequent changes without much notice did create some difficulties for food store operations. He explained: “We brought on staff this [yesterday] morning to get off the job at 7pm, and then found we had to work them until 10pm.

“They then have to settle up, and we have to stock up.

RUPERT ROBERTS We try to stock up during the day when shoppers shop, and after we close we complete the bulk of it.”

The Super Value chief then revealed he is seeking to acquire six months’ worth of food inventories to guard against the possibility of supply chain and logistics disruptions elsewhere in the world, increasing this from his previous three-month target.

“It’s really changed,” he told Tribune Business. “I said to tell my buyer that I wanted a period-and-a-half - that’s six weeks. When this came on I extended it to a period-and-ahalf plus three months. When we speak she tells me she’s added three more containers, five more containers to build the stock back up to three months.

“I have to tell her to add five more containers to back that up. We’ve had to change from a three-month buildup to six months’ build-up because we don’t know what’s going to happen, but I’m going to supply the country with food as long as the Ministry of Finance has foreign exchange to do it.

“Once we started buying and orders were being cut, we realised we had to get more serious and make sure we over-ordered to build up an extra three months. My goal is more like six months instead of three. I discussed bringing in an extra three months with Dr Duane Sands, and he agreed, although he thought I was over-doing it and people would hoard, but it turned out worse.”

Vacancy Announcement

The American Embassy in Nassau is accepting applications for the following position:

Accountability Service Center (ASC) Clerk Salary $28,146 – $42,222 Duties: This is one of seven positions assigned to the Accountability Service Center (ASC), our “one-stop shop” for managing all accountable aspects of Property Management, Real Estate and Fleet Management. The ASC safeguards against waste, fraud and abuse of U.S. government property through impeccable record keeping, analysis of processes and information; performs or arranges management audits; establishes and recommends improvements in management controls. Incumbent responds to requests, executes tasks, and participates in various projects assigned by the supervisor. Incumbent reports to and is reviewed by the ASC supervisor.

Interested candidates are required to possess the following skills and qualifications: • Education: Completion of High School Diploma is required.

• Experience: A minimum of two years of administrative management experience is required.

• Language: English level III (good working knowledge) is required.

The complete Vacancy Announcement and Application forms are available online on the Electronic Recruitment Application (ERA) located on the following website: https://bs.usembassy.gov/embassy/jobs Applications will not be accepted at the Security Gate of the Embassy, by mail, E-mail or other means of delivery.

Deadline for applications is April 10, 2020.

Due to the high volume of applications, unsuccessful candidates will not be contacted.

months’ time if the COVID19 pandemic can be brought under control locally.

That would place The Bahamas on course for an early to mid-June partial opening at best should this timeline prove accurate and the COVID-19 fight prove successful. However, that is also likely to mean many more businesses who are unable to hang on and keep paying their staff, which in turn places a greater strain on National Insurance Board (NIB) benefits.

The government is today supposed to launch its $60m tax deferral and credit initiative, which is targeted at providing payroll support to medium and large-sized businesses who meet the criteria, in an effort to save 10,000 jobs and keep them off the NIB queue. The details for the initiative have yet to be released by the Ministry of Finance.

While declining to comment directly on the timeline provided by Mr Bethel, Mr Myers yesterday said the government also has yet to publicly release any further details on the economic advisory body unveiled by Dr Hubert Minnis as a forum that will plot The Bahamas’ course to recovery.

“That sort of thing is as urgent as the health crisis,” he said, “because that is going to cause two more crises - that’s a financial crisis,

and a social instability crisis.

If we don’t start planning for the inevitable we’re going to have deeper problems.

“That’s what I’d like to hear more about: When we’re going to do what, and how we’re going to get ourselves out of this thing. We all know we’re in a hole, but what’s the plan in terms of recovery, stimulus, and all those things - generating new foreign direct investment, stimulating foreign direct investment and local investment?

“I think the prime minister and the government have to understand that the private sector and citizen sentiment is critical, and that that is going to be a product of their communication.

That has to be a priority at some time. They’re not just managing a health crisis,” Mr Myers explained.

“Citizens want to know when they’re getting back to work, as well as how much they’re going to spend and how much they’re going to save to deal with their situation. Beyond the shutdown the government has to communicate what it sees, as are other governments. What will the timelines be?”

Mr Myers emphasised that none of what he said was trying to be “antagonistic” or controversial, but rather to ensure that the government brought all stakeholders on board to ensure The Bahamas’ economic revival was as rapid as

possible post-COVID-19.

He added that the government had all the necessary health, economic and financial data that the private sector and citizens do not have access to, and suggested that this should be released so that the private sector and individuals can chart their own recovery plans.

“They’re [the government] doing the best they can, but we’re all sitting on pins and needles waiting to find out and figure out what’s going on,” Mr Myers told Tribune Business. ““They can probably do better by pulling in more people from the private sector to help them get through this.

The rest of us are not in the know.

“We’re not expecting them to get through it on their own. It’s all our problem. It’s not just the government’s. It belongs to all of us as Bahamian citizens. The government needs to recognise it can pull on all these resources to come up with a game plan. We’re all freaking out and on pins and needles trying to figure out what’s going on.

“We need to pull on all the assets the country has to offer, get the smartest minds in the room and let’s figure this out. We must understand what the timeline looks like? If Carl Bethel is talking about details, let’s hear all of it, get involved and collaborate.”

PAGE 6, Wednesday, April 8, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

Coronavirus pandemic breeds Washington lobbying boom

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CROSSWORD PUZZLE Thursday, April 9, 2020

WASHINGTON Associated Press

MARKET REPORT www.bisxbahamas.com

(242) 323-2330

TUESDAY, 7 APRIL 2020

(242) 323-2320

ALL SHARE INDEX: CLOSE: 2,153.03 | CHG: -0.13 | %CHG: -0.01 | YTD: -78.57 | YTD%: -3.52 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 13.04 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

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

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 2.91 4.90 9.66 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 2.85 4.90 9.56 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 -0.06 0.00 -0.10 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1000.00 1.00 10.00 1.00

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

1,000

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 27.9 10.5 14.8 11.2 17.3 9.6 20.8 24.1

0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000

0.000 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% 15.23% 1.22% 3.43% 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

THE coronavirus pandemic has gut-punched global markets, put 6.6 million Americans out of work and raised the likelihood of a recession. But in the Washington lobbying world, business is booming.

Companies, interest groups and entire industries are seeking help from lobbyists as they navigate a chaotic environment to secure a piece of the record $2.2tn financial aid package the Trump administration must quickly pump out in an effort to stabilise the US economy.

An Associated Press analysis of federal lobbying filings shows the number of companies and organisations hiring lobbyists shot up dramatically across the months of February, March and early April. Of the more than 700 registrations filed since the beginning of the year, at least 70 specifically mention the new virus, COVID-19 or a global health crisis.

Dozens of other lobbyists and firms who were previously retained list the virus or the stimulus legislation in recent quarterly lobbying reports.

And there has also been a stark increase in medical groups, drug makers and others connected to the medical industry who have hired lobbyists, even if the virus was not specifically given as a reason in the disclosures.

The surge in lobbying provided another potent example of the power and sway Washington’s permanent influence industry can hold during times of crisis.

Federal disclosures show medical supply manufacturers hired lobbyists to promote products. Other companies have hired lobbyists as they seek to use the pandemic to justify regulatory changes or understand how the outbreak affects their bottom lines.

Then there’s the union representing the US Park Police, a federal law enforcement agency. It hired a lobbyist to communicate with other federal officials after officers struggled to get their agency bosses to recognise the danger posed by keeping open national parks in dense urban areas.

Gary Gallant, the lobbyist they retained, said Park Police officers were concerned their well-being and the health of park visitors were “being placed in unnecessary risk, and social distancing was nearly impossible to enforce”. He said the union wanted to be connected with elected officials in Washington who might be able to get the National Park Service to get the parks closed.

Lee Weingart, the founder of the firm the LNE Group, said he was hired to help drum up business for a New York-based manufacturer On the Right Track Systems Inc, which makes quick-change hospital curtains.

“Our goal really is to find those pockets of money made available by Congress,” Weingart said.

Even manufacturing conglomerate 3M — the company that has been the subject of scorn from President Donald Trump as it tries to meet the relentless demand for face masks — stated in a filing that it wants the government to address regulations and laws “related to manufacturing of respirators and liability protection during health emergencies”.

An advocacy group called the Coalition for a Prosperous America registered to lobby on matters ranging

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from the “re-shoring of vital medical and healthcare supplies, products, and devices” to “removing barriers for copper to be deployed as (an) antimicrobial”.

And Vyaire Medical Inc, an Illinois-based maker of critically needed ventilators, hired a firm as it seeks to draw attention to its “complete portfolio of breathing solutions”.

The pandemic also has generated lobbying jobs that might seem obscure to anyone but the client.

Laundrylux, a New York company that sells commercial laundry equipment, employed Ballard Partners, the lobbying firm run by a top fundraiser for Trump, to get laundromats added to a federal advisory list of essential businesses that should stay open.

There are about 30,000 laundromats in the US, and many of them operate on tight budgets. If forced to close during the pandemic, they might not survive financially and Laundrylux may lose current and potential customers, said lobbyist Dan McFaul, a Ballard executive who was a member of Trump’s presidential transition team.

Brian Ballard, whom Trump picked to be vice chairman of his inaugural committee, also is registered to lobby for Laundrylux.

The problem for Laundrylux: Not all states have been precise or consistent about the categories of businesses permitted to stay open. Federal guidance that recognised laundromats — and that many state and local officials rely on when making closure decisions — would clear up any confusion.

Independent business owners in Washington, DC, formed a limited liability company called DC 2021 amid concerns the stimulus package won’t do enough to help them, then hired the Carmen Group to lobby on “business issues”, according to a registration report filed with the DC government.

Geoffrey Griffis, a DC real estate developer who spearheaded DC 2021, said the loan he may qualify for through the economic relief package is dwarfed by the millions of dollars in potential losses he’s facing over the next year.

“The federal stimulus isn’t going to do much for us,” Griffis said.

Other lobbyists have even been retained for the primary purpose of explaining provisions of the relief legislation.

Companies that supply temporary and contract employees asked more than 1,000 questions about the $2.2tn coronavirus bailout during a 90-minute online meeting held last week by the American Staffing Association.

“And none of those questions were anything but ‘Can you tell me what this section of the bill means?’” said Jack Kingston, a former Republican congressman from Georgia who registered last month to lobby for the association.

Kingston, who joined the law firm Squire Patton Boggs in 2015 after 22 years in Congress, said the association, whose 1,400 members include Kelly Services and Manpower, “hired us defensively.”

One issue that arose during the webinar stemmed from a prohibition in the legislation against outsourcing, Kingston said. Businesses with 500 to 10,000 employees that receive loans have to certify that for the term of the loan and two years after repayment they won’t outsource workers. Staffing companies are adamant the ban not be construed to apply to a company’s use of temporary help.

“We just want to make sure that they’re heard by Congress. ... as we rush through rules and legislation to try and address the crisis,” Kingston said.

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 8, 2020, PAGE 7

Online grocery services struggle to meet spike in demand LONDON Associated Press A PANDEMIC forcing everyone to stay home could be the perfect moment for online grocery services. In practice, they’ve been struggling to keep up with a surge in orders, highlighting their limited ability to respond to an unprecedented onslaught of demand.

After panic buying left store shelves stripped of staples like pasta, canned goods and toilet paper, many shoppers quickly found online grocery delivery slots almost impossible to come by, too.

“It’s kind of becoming more challenging to put a meal together,” said Paul Smyth, a software engineer who lives near Manchester, England, where the online groceries industry is particularly advanced. He’s a longtime customer of British online-only supermarket Ocado but hasn’t been able to land a slot since he received his last delivery two weeks ago.

The problem for many delivery services is ramping up staff to pick goods in shops and deliver. But for Ocado, a cutting edge service that relies on warehouse robots, significantly increasing deliveries would mean a big investment in new machinery and warehouses too late to catch the spike in demand.

Smyth said he’s starting to run low on meat and frozen goods, but wants to avoid going to a supermarket because he worries his asthma, diabetes and high blood pressure are risk factors if he catches the new coronavirus.

“I won’t be panicking for another week, but if I’ve got to wait another two weeks for a delivery slot it’s going to be very close to the bone.”

The coronavirus crisis is giving the e-commerce industry a boost but troubles at Ocado and other online grocers highlight how hard it is for the industry to quickly scale up

PEOPLE stand in an aisle of empty shelves in a supermarket in London, amid panic-buying due to the coronavirus outbreak. A pandemic forcing everyone to stay home could be the perfect moment for online grocery services. In practice, they’ve been struggling to keep up with a surge in orders, highlighting their limited ability to respond to an unprecedented onslaught of demand. After panic buying left store shelves stripped of staples like pasta, canned goods and toilet paper, many shoppers quickly found online grocery delivery slots almost impossible to come by, too.

Photo: Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP online delivery.

In the US, grocery shopping had only been slowly migrating online, making up 3% of the food retail market, according to a report last year by Deutsche Bank.

As the crisis hit, delivery orders surged as millions of Americans stayed home.

During the week of March 2, even before some cities and states imposed “stay at home” orders, Instacart, Amazon, and Walmart grocery delivery sales all jumped by at least two-thirds from the year before, according to Earnest Research. Instacart, a platform that partners with more than 25,000 stores in North America, says orders in more recent weeks have surged 150%.

As a result, customers in hard-hit New York City are waiting days to schedule deliveries that usually take just hours.

In China, where the outbreak originated early this year, ubiquitous smartphone food apps helped millions get through months of strict lockdown. Even so, e-commerce giant Alibaba’s supermarket chain Freshippo reportedly recruited laid off restaurant workers for temporary staff as more customers shifted to ordering by app and average basket sizes jumped in the

first half of February.

Britain’s online grocery market, one of the world’s most advanced, is estimated to account for 8.3% of all sales in 2020, according to market research firm Mintel. Nevertheless, Ocado and the online arms of bricks and mortar rivals like Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Walmart owned-Asda were all booked up. To be fair, they’re prioritising slots for vulnerable customers.

Ocado has pioneered online groceries in the UK since 2002 with automated warehouse robots and has licensed its technology to other companies including Kroger. That experience wasn’t enough when its website melted down after traffic quadrupled.

The company battled to get systems back to normal by taking its smartphone app offline and stopping new account signups. It temporarily blocked its website, then made all visitors wait in a virtual queue, alienating long-time users.

“It just felt as if they’d completely abandoned customers,” said Smyth, 50, who waited as long as four hours online only to find there were no delivery slots.

Ocado now has a new system to allocate slots but Smyth still hasn’t had any luck and is getting by with basic items from a local shop.

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CRUSADER PRIZE CROSSWORD acrOss 1 Behind large house, motorist makes a big hit (4-6) 6 Land left, when getting nothing (4) 10 Imagine old Scot by river (7) 11 Drone about old, old problem for gangster (7) 12 Guide has assembled fleet advertised (9) 13 Behold layoff for being faithful (5) 14 English composer’s ecstasy (5) 15 Troublemaker in a structure first (9) 17 On the other hand, profit after article on sodium (4,5) 20 Treated once without a lot of water (5) 21 Left university free to be sensational (5) 23 Urban view showing terribly icy aspect (9) 25 Feline has uncovered some entertainment (7) 26 Knock traitor with a load of rubbish (3-1-3) 27 Place and time for gentle stroke (4) 28 Wild male cicada belonging to a college (10)

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE

TIGER

CALVIN & HOBBES

TARGET

ALIEN ● AUSTIN POW

1 2 3 4 DOWN BACK 1 Student of vision (5) TO THE FUTURE ● BATM 2 Curl performed to HARD ● GODFATHER ● IND DIE musical backing – that’s profitable (9) IRON MAN ● LORD OF THE 10 3 Drink to flag, getting unfair MAD MAX ● MATRIX ● NAK treatment (6,8) 4 Current trainerSCREAM endlessly ● SPIDER-MAN ● TE dispersing lack of 12 TOY STORY ● X-ME movement (7) 5 Inched away towards a monotreme (7) 7 Friend has ring – brass, 14 15 say (5) 8 Easy to put on weight for a fool (9) 9 Gather new mortise is a 17 18 valuable thing (10,4) Quick wordSEarch 14 Seal shows courage croSSword reaching limit (6,3) Q R E T S A O C R 16 Nice move, taking final one 21 E 22O M R F C A N 23D across: to be rigid1 (9) Instruction; 9 Obelisk; L I I L T E F T Z 18 Hermit puts in 10 sulphur Rifle; 11 Wisps; E F R R Y O R Y U something12like vinegar13(7) Newness; Repays; M U R E T H F R D 19 Of a certain 15 disposition, Carton; 18 Nonplus;25 true and eccentric (7) Swift; U N O Z G N S F I 20 Chill; 22 22 Disprove engineers’ L S R T F A U T E 23 Element; objection (5) 24 Necessitate.

F L M L Z X N R U 24 Praise former spouse, 27 G I A A L N 28 S E Q returning down: auction item (5) 2 Needs; 3 Thirsty; O D Z W H K E L M 4 Unkind; 5 Throw; L E E L E S U O R 6 Offbeat; 7 Forwardness; H O U L H O O P L 8 Personality; 14 Pensive; E L T S A C Y C N 16 Ancient; 17 Assess; 19 Lithe; 21 Inept.

Z E H A U N T E D

YES

THE ALPHABEATE

R G H O S T T R A

otm Er i E E t

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

cAn you crack the Alphabeater? Each grid alpha targEt thE Ex number represents a letter – or black square.

09 poMpadour across: Ration, Zo As in Alphapuzzle, every letter of the alphabet (Ded Diagram, Floor, each Cute damp dorp droop drop is appro used.

But you have to complete the grid too!

Jive, Lunch, Caustic dump pard pomp POMPADOUR use thepoor givenpour letters black squares below Anorak. poop pramand prod prom the grid to start. the grid is ‘rotationally down: Product, 09 Bla promo prop proud puma pump symmetrical’ – in other theWorry, Highw Anvil, *Calls pupa ramp romp rump words, it looks you Bonfire, Funny, Divo same if you turn the page upside down.

Scarf, Teacake. ne Solution on Monday

A 40 37 33 21 27 20 17 4 35 36 B C 12 33 38 31 36 30 2 12 16 33 D E 15 4 32 17 5 38 39 3 33 2 F G 3 32 40 20 18 20 33 35 19 37 H I 10 17 14 9 20 26 9 40 5 22 TODAY’S TARGET J Good 19; very good 28; excellent 38 K 13 27 22 10 2 34 17 9 9 13 (or more). Solution on Monday L M 10 14 19 29 5 30 6 18 10 26 call 0907 181 2585 N for today’s target solution O 36 28as a23 12 crossword, 14 34 the 14task27in Kakuro 22 24 Best described number *Calls cost 80p per minute plus your telephone is to fill P all of the empty squares, using numbers 1 to 9, so company’s network access charge.

Q 1of each the sum to its21 29 horizontal 17 13block 7 equals 2 the 11 number 2 37 left, and R the sum of each vertical block equals the number on its top.

No number may be used in the same block S 14 19 39 33 15 19 21 9 1more9 than once.

The difficulty level of the Conceptis Kakuro T increases from Monday to Sunday.

U 22 5 40 28 17 18 4 26 5 33 FIND where the fleet of ships shown is hidden V in the grid. The numbers to the right of and W 37 21 19 17 9 1 18 28 38 39 below the grid indicate how many of the squares in that row are filled in with ships or X Yesterday’s Yesterday’s parts of ships. The ships do not touch each Y 30 10 38 29 21 11 14 5 16 10 other, even diagonally. Some squares have Sudoku Answer Kakuro Answer Z 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

been filled in to start you off.

Solution on Monday

1

2

21

22

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30 31

32

33

34 35

■

■

Y

■F

15

G

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

KEIJO 3

CRYPTIC PUZZLE 1 Eager aunt arranged to act as security (9) 8 Arrived with nothing but a carving (5) 9 Make a note to crush someone (3,4) 10 Note deserter is not charged (6) 11 Many admit to being inexperienced (6)

2 A lump in the throat (5) a difficult problem (6) 4 A man of property

in a card game (6) as a model (7)

15 Involved in a score

11 A pause made by

or film story (8)

canoeists (9)

21 Aggressive marital break-up (7) 22 Monsters back among the lesser goblins (5) 23 Fatigue confuses both residents and dissenter (9)

6

1 x Battleship

3 x Destroyer

2 x cruiser

4 x submarine

10 11 12

13

14 15

16

17 18

19

20 21 22 23

13 A libel judge may hear it, but it’s usually shelved (8) 14 Court cards? (7) 16 Seize a king before all others (6) 17 Having failed to win is punished (6) 19 Not rounds used in erratic salvo (5)

Across 1 Peremptorily (3,2,4) 8 Severe (5) 9 Commissioned rank (7)

Down 2 Customary practice (5) 3 Uproar (6) 4 Intensify (8)

10 Elusive (6)

5 Vienna’s river (6)

11 Quest (6)

6 Instruction (7)

Yesterday’s Cryptic Solution

Yesterday’s Easy Solution

12 Mark well (4,4)

7 Courteous

Across: 1 Sighted, 4 Tasks, 7 Ewan, 8 Veronese, 10 Paper clips, 12 Canoes, 13 Orders, 15 Elasticity, 18 Sturgeon, 19 Kite, 20 Smelt, 21 Engaged.

Across: 1 Wyoming, 4 Poser,

15 Way of speaking (8)

7 Rash, 8 Hit it off, 10 Dead

18 Infuriate (6)

11 Trim and neat (9)

letter, 12 Callow, 13 Combat,

20 Retain one’s

13 Readily

Down: 1 Sweep, 2 Grasping, 3 Dwells, 4 Troop train, 5 Slew, 6 Sleighs, 9 Green light, 11 Retiring, 12 Courses, 14 Ashore, 16 Yield, 17 Jute.

Down: 1 World, 2 Obstacle,

15 Smattering, 18 Popinjay, 19 Gaze, 20 Runny, 21 Descent.

grip (4,2)

regard (9)

predictable (4-4)

21 Inclination (7)

14 Wildly excited (7)

3 Gaiety, 4 Prime mover, 5 Stow,

22 Previous (5)

16 On a ship (6)

6 Reflect, 9 Blood money,

23 Little-known

17 Immediately (6)

11 Abdicate, 12 Clipper, 14 Strand, 16 Guest, 17 Spin.

contender (4,5)

3

7

9

6 Employ someone else

on stress (9)

alternative teachers (6)

5 8

for long (3,5) 5 Create chaos

doesn’t gamble (2,6)

to hold work back (4,2)

4

perhaps but not

7 Restrict study

20 Express disapproval about

3

3 It may be used to sort out

12 Just as bad as one who

18 Continue being eager

2

Down

EASY PUZZLE

Across

1

19 Class of objects (5)

4

3

1

2

4

2

2

4

1

2

4

1

1

3

PAGE 10, Wednesday, April 8, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE LIVES OF THE CHILDREN AT RANFURLY

T

he Ranfurly Homes for Children has been a safe haven for thousands of Bahamian children since 1956. The Home provides a safe, structured environment for children who have been orphaned, abused, neglected or abandoned.

YOU can make a difference in the lives of the children at Ranfurly. With your support children can have nutritious food, warm beds and a safe environment where they can discover the joy of being children. For years the children living and learning at Ranfurly have made great social and academic strides.

Their further development requires additional support in the form of a Transitional Home, planned for construction on the Ranfurly property.

This residence will cater to teenagers and young adults who are beyond school age, but need accommodation while they find work and gain independence from the Home.

We look forward to your continued support in this worthwhile endeavour.

MEMBERSHIP PACKAGES Individuals, Families & Corporate Sponsors Children Helping Children - $5 (Individual children from ages 6 - 18) Individuals Helping Children - $50 (Individual adults 18 years and over) Families Helping Children - $100

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OPPORTUNITIES • • • •

Invitations to Ranfurly events Assist with fundraising events Involvement with special activities Adults are eligible to join the Board after three months • Stay in touch with Ranfurly through website and newsletters

BENEFITS

• Personal fulfillment in knowing you are impacting lives • Ranfurly children’s appreciation and positive response • Continued support provides stability and constant care

For more information visit: www.ranfurlyhome.org Please “Like” us on Facebook Ranfurly Home for Children, Mackey Street P.O. Box 1413 Nassau, Bahamas 242-393-3115

THE TRIBUNE

Wednesday, April 8, 2020, PAGE 11

A stock rally fizzles out on Wall Street; oil prices plunge NEW YORK Associated Press A BIG rally on Wall Street suddenly vanished yesterday, the latest twist for a market dominated by sharp swings amid the coronavirus outbreak.

The S&P 500 dipped 0.2% after erasing a surge of 3.5% earlier in the day. The market’s gains faded as the price of US crude oil abruptly flipped from a gain to a steep loss of more than 9%.

It dampened what had been an ebullient day for markets worldwide. European and Asian markets rallied earlier, following up on Monday’s 7% surge for the S&P 500 on encouraging signs that the coronavirus pandemic may be close to leveling off in some of the hardest-hit areas of the world.

Even though economists say a punishing recession is inevitable, some investors have begun to look ahead to when economies will reopen from their medically induced coma. A peak in new infections would offer some clarity about how long the recession may last and how deep it will be.

Investors could then, finally, envision the other side of the economic shutdown, after authorities forced businesses to halt in hopes of slowing the spread of the virus. In the meantime, governments around the world are talking about pumping trillions of dollars more of aid for the economy.

Many professional investors say they’ve been wary of the recent upsurge and expect more volatility ahead.

The S&P 500 has rallied nearly 19% since hitting a low on March 23, though it’s still down 21.5% from its record set in February.

“It’s important to remember we shouldn’t over-extrapolate temporary trends,” said Patrick Schaffer, global investment specialist at JP Morgan Private Bank.

Such concerns were borne out in yesterday’s trading, when the S&P 500 swung up, down, up, down and back up again through the day.

“We are still in what you would call the relief rally off of the prior low,” said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA. He noted that this kind of a rally is common within deep bear markets, Wall Street-speak for when stocks decline 20% or more from a peak.

“There’s no guarantee that the worst is behind us, yet traders believe that at least there is some shortterm money to be made,” Stovall said.

The S&P 500 fell 4.27 points to 2,659.41. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 26.13 points, or 0.1%, to 22,653.86 after losing an earlier gain of 937 points. The Nasdaq composite dropped 25.98, or 0.3%, to 7,887.26.

Oil prices have been even more volatile than the stock market in recent weeks as demand has dried up for energy amid a global economy weakened by the coronavirus outbreak.

Russia and Saudi Arabia have also been locked in a price war, refusing to cut production sharply even as the world is awash in excess oil.

President Donald Trump

IN this image taken from video provided by the New York Stock Exchange, Tommy Gannon, Assistant Supervisor, Facilities, rings the opening bell at the NYSE, and recognises the Sodexo food services staff at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston yesterday in New York.

Photo: New York Stock Exchange/AP said last week that he hoped and expected the two sides could agree on production cutbacks, which helped prices spurt higher temporarily. But investors still aren’t convinced about a deal, and benchmark US crude oil fell $2.45, or 9.4%, to settle at $23.63 per barrel.

Brent crude, the international standard, fell $1.18 to $31.87 per barrel.

Its decline is another reminder of how many people are no longer driving to work, flying to meetings or heading to the store amid the economic shutdown.

And the hangover could last for a while.

“It’s very hard today to envision baseball stadiums in June filled with people drinking beer and watching games,” said JP Morgan Private Bank’s Schaffer.

“People today don’t anticipate that the economy is going to turn back on like a light switch, but rather that it will be a gradual reopening of certain parts of the economy.”

Experts say more deaths are on the way due to COVID-19, which has already claimed at least 81,000 lives around the world. The US leads the world in confirmed cases with more than 386,000, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

More economic misery is also on the horizon.

Economists expect a report tomorro to show that five million Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week as layoffs sweep the country. That would bring the total to nearly 15 million over the past three weeks. Analysts also expect big companies in upcoming weeks to report their worst quarter of profit declines in more than a decade.

But investors have grabbed onto some glimmers of optimism. China, the first country to lock down wide swaths of its economy to slow the spread of the virus, reported no new deaths over the past 24 hours. Many experts are skeptical of China’s virus figures, but investors also see signals that the number of daily infections and deaths may be close to peaking or plateauing in Spain, Italy and New York.

To advertise in The Tribune, contact 502-2394

Central banks and governments are promising massive amounts of aid to prop up the economy.

Japan’s government on Tuesday formally announced a 108 trillion yen ($1tn) package for the world’s third-largest economy.

In the US, the White House is seeking an additional $250bn for a programme to help small businesses, which was part of the $2.2tn rescue package Congress approved last month.

In Europe, Germany’s DAX jumped 2.8%, and France’s CAC 40 rose 2.1%.

The FTSE 100 in London added 2.2%. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 2%, South Korea’s Kospi gained 1.8% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong was up 2.1%.

In a signal that investors are feeling less pessimistic about the economy and inflation, they pushed the yield of the ten-year Treasury up to 0.72% from 0.67% late on Monday.

PAGE 12, Wednesday, April 8, 2020

THE TRIBUNE

THE WEATHER REPORT

5-Day Forecast

TODAY

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

Mostly sunny

Mainly clear

Sunshine

Mostly sunny

Mostly sunny with a passing shower

Partly sunny with a passing shower

High: 83°

Low: 72°

High: 84° Low: 73°

High: 85° Low: 71°

High: 83° Low: 72°

High: 84° Low: 73°

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

AccuWeather RealFeel

91° F

75° F

94°-80° F

96°-77° F

90°-74° F

90°-76° F

ORLANDO

High: 89° F/32° C Low: 71° F/22° C

TAMPA

High: 84° F/29° C Low: 72° F/22° 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.

N

almanac

E

W

ABACO

S

N

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 76° F/24° C

6-12 knots

S

High: 92° F/33° C Low: 73° F/23° C

7-14 knots

FT. LAUDERDALE

FREEPORT

High: 90° F/32° C Low: 73° F/23° C

E

W S

E

W

WEST PALM BEACH

N

uV inDex toDay

TONIGHT

High: 84° F/29° C Low: 72° F/22° C

MIAMI

High: 92° F/33° C Low: 73° F/23° C

4-8 knots

KEY WEST

High: 85° F/29° C Low: 77° F/25° C

ELEUTHERA

NASSAU

High: 83° F/28° C Low: 72° F/22° C

Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2020

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 75° F/24° C

N

tiDes For nassau High

Ht.(ft.)

Low

Ht.(ft.)

Today

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

Tuesday

1:40 a.m.

2:10 p.m.

2.8 2.1

8:15 a.m.

8:16 p.m.

0.2 0.2

sun anD moon Sunrise Sunset

6:54 a.m.

7:30 p.m.

Moonrise Moonset

8:25 p.m.

7:29 a.m.

Last

New

First

Full

Apr. 14

Apr. 22

Apr. 30

May 7

CAT ISLAND

E

W

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 73° F/23° C

N

S

E

W

4-8 knots

S

6-12 knots Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.

Statistics are for Nassau through 2 p.m. yesterday Temperature High ................................................... 81° F/27° C Low .................................................... 71° F/22° C Normal high ....................................... 81° F/27° C Normal low ........................................ 68° F/20° C Last year’s high ................................. 87° F/30° C Last year’s low ................................... 71° F/22° C Precipitation As of 2 p.m. yesterday ................................. 0.96” Year to date ................................................. 2.69” Normal year to date ..................................... 4.97”

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

ANDROS

SAN SALVADOR

GREAT EXUMA

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 73° F/23° C

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

N

High: 81° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

E

W S

LONG ISLAND

tracking map

High: 80° F/27° C Low: 74° F/23° C

6-12 knots

MAYAGUANA High: 80° F/27° C Low: 75° F/24° C

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

CROOKED ISLAND / ACKLINS RAGGED ISLAND High: 79° F/26° C Low: 75° F/24° C

GREAT INAGUA High: 83° F/28° C Low: 75° F/24° C

N

H

N E

W

E

W

H

High: 79° F/26° C Low: 75° F/24° C

S

S

6-12 knots

4-8 knots

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

Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday: Today: Thursday:

WINDS SW at 7-14 Knots W at 8-16 Knots S at 4-8 Knots WSW at 6-12 Knots SSE at 4-8 Knots SW at 6-12 Knots ESE at 4-8 Knots SSW at 4-8 Knots S at 6-12 Knots SW at 7-14 Knots SW at 6-12 Knots W at 7-14 Knots S at 6-12 Knots SW at 6-12 Knots E at 4-8 Knots SSW at 4-8 Knots SE at 4-8 Knots SSW at 4-8 Knots E at 6-12 Knots SSW at 4-8 Knots S at 4-8 Knots WSW at 6-12 Knots SE at 6-12 Knots S at 4-8 Knots S at 6-12 Knots SW at 7-14 Knots

WAVES 3-6 Feet 3-5 Feet 1-2 Feet 0-1 Feet 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 3-5 Feet 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-2 Feet 3-6 Feet 2-4 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-2 Feet 1-3 Feet 1-3 Feet

To advertise ALL your LEGAL NOTICES, call The Tribune’s Sales Department

502-2394

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 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles 10 Miles

WATER TEMPS. 76° F 77° F 82° F 82° F 75° F 75° F 79° F 80° F 77° F 77° F 74° F 76° F 79° F 80° F 80° F 80° F 79° F 79° F 81° F 80° F 78° F 78° F 79° F 79° F 77° F 76° F