business@tribunemedia.net
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2021
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$52m Bahamas boost from single cruise line By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A 156 percent increase in Nassau calls by just one cruise line has the potential to generate a $52m-plus boost for the Bahamian economy in 2022, Nassau Cruise Port’s top executive revealed yesterday Michael Maura told Tribune Business that Mediterranean Shipping Company’s (MSC) plans to expand its Nassau calls by from 45 in 2019 to 115 in 2022 - an increase of 70 - will bring an additional 350,000 passengers to the Bahamian capital based on all vessels carrying 5,000 persons. Using Ministry of Tourism data suggesting that cruise
• MSC to bring 350k extra passengers on 156% call rise • Port chief eyes ‘huge impact’ in 2022 as RCCL expands • Winning bidders for new retail spaces unveiled today MICHAEL MAURA passengers spend $100 per person in Nassau, he said MSC’s extra arrivals alone would generate a $35m increase in visitor spending injected into the local economy for the
benefit of businesses/employees that rely on the sector for their livelihoods. And, should Nassau Cruise Port succeed in increasing per capita cruise passenger spending
by an extra $50 per head via its $250m Prince George Wharf transformation, Mr Maura added that the total outlay
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COVID measures ‘can’t last forever’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
ROMAULD FERREIRA
Stronger shipping waste regulations ‘ready to go’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE outgoing environment minister says regulations to strengthen ship waste disposal procedures are “ready to go” as the Government awaits a report on the recent invasive beetle controversy. Romauld Ferreira, speaking to Tribune Business just before the general election, said he had drafted the regulations himself. He added, though, that zoology specialists were still trying to determine precisely what type of beetle species was offloaded, treated and burnt in Freeport in late July. “We’re still awaiting the entomologist. They weren’t able to find a live specimen to make a conclusion as to what beetle species it is,” Mr Ferreira explained.
“The safety protocols they followed, the treated the wood and burnt it, with a view to destroying what was there. They weren’t able to find a live organism, and are trying to find forensic evidence from whatever burrow they were making. That process is still in train.” The Government had previously said “an interagency committee” featuring the Department of Public Prosecutions, Bahamas Customs, the Royal Bahamas Police Force, the Department of Environmental Health Services, the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources, the Office of the Prime Minister, the Department of Forestry, had been formed to investigate the offloading of the beetleinfested waste wood by the
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Bahamian insurers under rating review By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A RATING agency’s decision to place two Bahamian insurance companies under review due to a $90.5m acquisition by its parent group was yesterday said to be routine and of no concern. A. M. Best, the insurance credit rating agency, said the ratings of Atlantic Medical Insurance (Bahamas) and Security and General Insurance Company - as well as all of Coralisle Group’s other subsidiaries - were under assessment due to the parent’s purchase
of Barbados-based Massy United Insurance Ltd. However, a well-placed source, speaking on condition of anonymity, described A. M. Best’s action as much ado about nothing. “That’s perfectly standard,” they explained. “Whenever there is a merger or acquisition, they place you under review so they can get an idea of whether it strengthens or impacts the rating. “They’re rated ‘A’, which is the highest. Massy is ‘a-’. There is nothing unusual about this at all. They’ll come back and say because there’s no territorial overlap
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THE Bahamas “cannot continue to live under restrictive COVID19 measures” if it wants its tourism industry and wider economy to fully rebound from the pandemic, a businessman said yesterday. Ben Albury, Bahamas Bus and Truck’s general manager, told Tribune Business that COVID-19 was “something we have to learn to live with” despite the overwhelming pressures on the healthcare system given that it shows no signs of fading away.
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CAREY LEONARD
Freeport faces ‘disaster’ if 2016 Act not repealed • Ex-GBPA attorney warns it will ‘kill investment’ if stays • ‘Serious deficiency’ that not replaced by Minnis Gov’t • But tax breaks ‘handed on silver platter’ to Hutchison By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Arguing that tourism will struggle to maintain its momentum amid curfews and emergency orders, he encouraged the incoming administration to review the health travel visa and PCR testing requirements that are impeding inter-island travel in The Bahamas. Speaking to this newspaper before last night’s election results were unveiled, Mr Albury said: “COVID19 is here and something we have to learn to live with. Our healthcare system has been neglected for too long, and some investment needs to be made there.
FREEPORT’S 2016 investment legislation is “an absolute disaster” that must be repealed if small and mediumsized businesses are to invest in the city, a prominent attorney warned yesterday. Carey Leonard, the former Grand Bahama Port Authority (GBPA) inhouse counsel, told Tribune Business prior to confirmation of last night’s general election results that the incoming administration will “absolutely kill any investment” if it seeks to revive the Grand Bahama (Port Area) Investment Incentives Act 2016. Chester Cooper, the Progressive Liberal Party’s (PLP) deputy leader, has already pledged to revitalise the Act, but Mr Leonard said the effect
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THE TRIBUNE
BEWARE PERIL OF UNFAIR EMPLOYEE DISMISSALS W
HEN you terminate an employee’s contract without a fair reason, it is an unfair or unlawful dismissal. Sometimes these issues are dealt with at Industrial Tribunals but, quite often, there are many terminations that go unaddressed. Our employment laws help employees seek compensation when they are dismissed unfairly, but employers also need to be aware of the intricacies and imbalanced dismissal
practices their companies may use. In the Bahamian context, firing someone for any of the following are automatically unfair reasons for dismissal. * Membership of a trade union - Even when employees are vocal and active in their unions, they have a right to form such groupds aimed at improving their working conditions. * Employee-exposed wrongdoing in your workplace (whistleblowing) - When an employer
IAN FERGUSON
or employee is engaged in an illegal practice, someone who calls it out should have protection from termination. * Maternity/paternity leave. Employees should never be dismissed for taking reasonable leave associated with child birth. Even if the leave is unpaid, dismissal should not be the option. * Suspected affiliation with a political party. Every employee is allowed, and expected, to exercise their constitutional right and
vote in general elections and referendums. Unless they are grossly political in attending rallies and participating in partisan events, there should be no negative repercussions. To protect your business, and to ensure staff receive fair treatment, you should always make sure you provide workers with copies of all procedures and policies, and make notes of all actions when an event could lead to an employment tribunal dispute. Above all, do everything in your power to
mitigate issues by resolving them before they escalate. • NB: Ian R Ferguson is a talent management and organisational development consultant, having completed graduate studies with regional and international universities. He has served organsations, both locally and globally, providing relevant solutions to their business growth and development issues. He may be contacted at tcconsultants@coralwave.com.
$52M BAHAMAS BOOST FROM SINGLE CRUISE LINE FROM PAGE ONE by MSC’s 350,000 additional passengers could hit $52.5m. Describing this as a “huge impact”, the Nassau Cruise Port chief said MSC is not along in increasing its Nassau calls beyond pre-COVID levels. He disclosed that Royal Caribbean has 451 calls “on the books” for 2022, representing a 17.4 percent rise on the 384 arrivals that Nassau saw in 2019 prior to the pandemic. Employing the same formula employed by Mr Maura with MSC, this would result in an extra 335,000 passengers and an additional $33.5m-$50.25m spending in The Bahamas. “MSC did 45 calls with us in 2019, and in 2022 we have them on the books for 115 calls. That’s the most significant increase,” Mr Maura told this newspaper. “Another big increase we have is with Royal Caribbean. Royal Caribbean in 2019 did 384 port calls with us, and then in 2022 we have them on the books for 451. It’s huge. It’s a huge impact given that we’ve got 70 additional calls from MSC and you consider that, in 2022, their ships could be back to having 5,000 passengers on board.
“Seventy calls multiplied by 5,000, that’s 350,000 passengers and new visitors. The Ministry of Tourism has historically advised that Nassau enjoyed $100 in per passenger spending. We’re working very hard to improve and expand our port offering at the Nassau Cruise Port by the investments we’re making in food and beverage, retail and tourism experiences,” he continued. “If we take the $100 spending figure given, that’s an extra $35m, and if we get a 50 percent increase in passenger spending because of thew new investments happening on Nassau’s waterfront, and per head spending goes from $100 to $150, just with the MSC passengers alone you will see an additional $50m-plus spend into the local economy. That’s a significant deal; a big deal.” Mr Maura said total cruise bookings for Nassau in 2022 were already 11.1 percent higher than for 2019, the last full year preCOVID. “In 2019 we had a total of 1,206 calls, and in 2022 we have on the books right now 1,340 calls,” he added. And Mr Maura said the port was expecting more than the 50 calls suggested
by Dr Hubert Minnis for this September. “It will be more than that. We have had 29 ships so far. Given that we have had 29 ships, and are half-way through the month, it will be closer to 60,” he said. “I think from a Bay Street commercial perspective it’s improved. There’s definitely a positive trend. It’s not enough yet.... We see tourists walking downtown, we tourists in stores. We have a ways to go to get back to pre-pandemic, but passenger volumes are up and we are seeing more ships.” Mr Maura said cruise ship calls on Nassau since June 2021 had come from just three lines - Royal Caribbean, Carnival and MSC. Disney and Norwegian Cruise Line will return next month, while Virgin Voyages will arrive in November. Turning to Prince George Wharf’s ongoing redevelopment, the Nassau Cruise Port chief said it will reveal today to all bidders who has succeeded in securing the six new retail spaces that will be made available at the new facility. And those who submitted proposals for the five new food and beverage sites will also be informed whether
they have been selected “in the coming weeks”. Open tender/bidding processes were involved, with retail bidders required to participate in a Request for Concept and food and beverage contenders in a Request for Proposal (RFP). While not revealing the number of bidders or their identities, Mr Maura added that Prince George Wharf’s 50 “legacy tenants” in the areas of retail, food and beverage will return to the cruise port once the space assigned for them has been completed. “One area we’re really interested in moving forward with is identifying new and additional authentic Bahamian products, so we will be reaching out to the Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation (BAIC) to get an updated inventory of local artisans and small manufacturers that can produce items very unique to The Bahamas that can be featured and sold in our new commercial space,” he explained. “We would encourage local manufacturers and artisans to send us e-mailed pictures of their products to info@nassaucruiseport. com. We want to get started with looking at these new
ideas and products that can be sold through Bahamian merchants that have successfully acquired those retail spaces at Nassau Cruise Port. “We have the 50 legacy tenants with a combination of retail, food and beverage merchants. Some of them are currently operating temporarily from Rawson Square. Once we complete their retail space, they’ll leave Rawson Square and move into the new retail or food and beverage space in Nassau Cruise Port that is called the Marketplace.” Mr Maura said the difference between the six new retail spaces and those for the previous tenants is size. The latter will receive spaces measuring between 10 feet and 15 feet, or 150 square feet in total, while the new six retail spots will be between 450 square feet and 700 square feet. “They are for operators that have greater production or distribution capacity because the square footage is higher, and the production network to keep the products on display and not run out of stock,” Mr Maura added. “The expectation is that the five beverage outlets are very unique. It’s not fast food franchises. It’s something special.”
Nassau Cruise Port is also “very comfortable and confident” that its marine works will be completed by early December 2021, with its north-eastern berth - berth six - sufficiently expanded to accommodate the largest cruise ship class in existence, the Oasis ships. Six cruise ships will be in port by then. “Our upland works are moving ahead,” Mr Maura said, with the new cruise arrivals terminal due to break ground next month. That building will house Nassau Cruise Port staff, Customs, Immigration and Port Department personnel, and a doctor’s office and space for medical examination. Construction of the cruise port’s Junkanoo museum and cultural experience will also begin next month, with the aim of completing this facility and the arrivals terminal at the same time. Dredging is now complete with the associated fill transported to the project’s western side to finish the seabed reclamation that will support the amphitheatre, western marina and new retail and food and beverage options.
FREEPORT FACES ‘DISASTER’ IF 2016 ACT NOT REPEALED FROM PAGE ONE would be to make the vast majority of the GBPA’s 3,500 licensees “beg” for the renewal of business licence, real property tax, income and capital gains tax exemptions. Faced with the prospect of double taxation, given the licence fees and service charges already paid to the GBPA, he added that the resulting uncertainty only served to discourage investment and job-creating business expansion in The Bahamas’ second city. While Kevin Seymour, the ex-Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce president, recently said the 2016 Act had been repealed but not replaced by the Minnis administration, Mr Leonard argued that the reality is slightly different. He asserted that the legislation remains
on the statute book, with the Minnis administration instead having passed annual measures that stopped it coming into effect. “If you revive that you will absolutely kill any real investment,” Mr Leonard warned the incoming administration on the 2016 Act. “You’re creating a process where everything a business does, you have to run to the Government and ask them first. You have no certainty. There’s no certainty with that Act at all. “The Act is an absolute disaster, and was never done with the purpose of looking at how to develop Grand Bahama. It was done with the idea of how to tax people. That’s what it amounted to when you read it.” Asserting that the failure to replace the 2016 Act is “a serious deficiency” that
the next government must correct, Mr Leonard added: “The implication, quite frankly, is that anybody that wants to do a second home investment, there’s no sense in them doing it. The reason is that you could be double taxed as there’s no certainty you would get the real property tax exemption. “Instead of knowing if I do this, that and the other I will get a), what winds up happening under the Act that I call the ‘Disincentives Act’ is that you get a real property tax exemption when you make an application to the Government. You don’t know what the criteria is that they will dream up. “There are too many variables for someone to make an investment. There’s no certainty in it because you have got to go in and beg someone to make a decision.” Mr Leonard accused
the Minnis administration of “in effect, kicking the can down the road instead of dealing with the problem”. The Grand Bahama (Port Area) Investment Incentives Act 2016 was met with furious opposition and resistance from many in corporate Freeport when it became law. This was because it would have forced all the GBPA’s 3,500 licensees - bar the Port Authority, its Hutchison Whampoa partner and their combined business interests - to apply annually to the central government in Nassau for the renewal of key tax breaks. The former Christie administration sought to tie their grant/renewal to the amount of investment involved and companies avoiding job cuts by maintaining their existing workforces for five years. It also threatened to
impose financial penalties on businesses who failed to live up to the promises they made in return for receiving the renewed tax breaks. The 2016 Act was also seen as an attack on Freeport’s founding treaty, and an attempt to undermine the Hawksbill Creek Agreement, by forcing GBPA licensees to apply to Nassau for benefits and rights this already provided them. Mr Leonard said some of the criteria, especially the guarantee of no layoffs, would be impossible to meet - especially in a COVID-19 environment. Instead, he urged the new administration: “You need to introduce a piece of legislation to encourage people to build homes and give businesses a very large degree of certainty for 10-20 years. “At the moment, your discouraging medium-sized
enterprises from coming to the country, developing and employing people. The danger of relying on big companies only is when something goes wrong, as you feel it more than anywhere else because you are so reliant on big business.... “It does not represent a good long-term strategy. You need businesses that are small enough that they must make it work. With big multinational corporations, if there’s a particular area that’s not working, they don’t say they must do this to survive; they say shut it down and go somewhere where they can make money. I want the person who says they’ve go to make it work, and have to make it work. That keeps jobs and the economy going.” Mr Leonard added that he found it particularly galling that the 2016 Act had renewed the tax breaks for the GBPA, Hutchison and all their affiliates while leaving all other licensees to run to Nassau to beg for the renewal of theirs. “That particular Bill gives a free ride to Hutchison, the Port Authority, and Grand Bahama Development Company (DevCo),” he told Tribune Business. “All the people who have not been doing their job have been congratulated and given the pie. What’s that telling everybody else? “Others have had to beg for the exemptions, whereas you are handing them on a silver platter to others and giving them a free ride.... A lot can be done, and if we want Freeport to operate as it can do, the potential is still phenomenal. We have the land space, but everyone has to pull their weight and comply with what they covenanted and agreed to do. “There are a lot of businesses here working very hard, but their life has not been made easy because a lot of things have not been done as they should have been.”
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, September 17, 2021, PAGE 3
Downtown business raises cruise concern
By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net A DOWNTOWN Nassau business yesterday challenged whether the cruise lines are giving their passengers correct information as just 20 percent are currently disembarking the vessel while in port. Tanya Bain, retail manager at the Perfume Bar, told Tribune Business that business is starting to pick up at both the company’s downtown locations after it reopened the store at the junction of East Street and Bay Street. She added, though, that only 20 percent of cruise passengers are leaving their vessel when it is docked in Nassau. Ms Bain said: “Out of the 1,000 people that arrive via the cruise ships every week, there are only about 200 that get off of the ship, and out of that 200 we only see about 10 percent of that in our stores. “We’ve discovered that the cruise ships are giving wrong information to their passengers. I don’t know if they want to keep them on the boat. They are
AERIAL vew of the Downtown area Bay St.
Bar owner: Let us open in morning By YOURI KEMP Tribune Business Reporter ykemp@tribunemedia.net A PUB owner yesterday suggested that he and other bar operators should be allowed to open at 9am in the morning to compensate for the hours lost to the night-time curfew. Marcian Sawyer, owner/ operator of the Crew Pub, told Tribune Business that amending his licence to allow morning openings would enable the business to generate more sales/cash flow and assist in helping to cover an ever-increasing pile of bills. “Closing up at 9pm is detrimental for a business that wants as much bodies in it at one time. When you’re
telling them that the stores on Bay Street were closed today [yesterday] because the election, and the day before that they said it was some holiday that doesn’t exist in The Bahamas, which was a Jewish holiday. “So that’s been basically our challenge. The passengers that are not listening are coming off. There needs to be some involvement from the Ministry of Tourism, and they should be informing the cruise ships about what’s going on in the country.” Describing this as the “first time” such a challenge has ever been experienced, Ms Bain suggested the cruise ships may be trying to prevent the spread of COVID-19 among their passengers by discouraging onshore exploration. Kanta Francis, owner/ operator of Kanta general store, said: “Business is coming along nicely. Normally we depend on the cruise ships, but the cruise ships are not coming as usual. We are just making a small bit of money, nothing spectacular. We are just hoping the cruise ships resume normally, but what we have now is better than lockdown.”
only operating for half the amount of time in the day, that’s half the amount of total sales,” Mr Sawyer said. “The extra morning hours would help. I have construction workers come in well before my 11am opening time to ask me if I am serving. I find that once you open the doors, people will come in no matter what time of the day it is once you are serving alcohol.” Mr Sawyer added: “Being a law-abiding citizen I am losing. I can’t open my bar at 9am or else they would close me down. I can’t believe that the Government is saying they want to stop the spread of COVID-19 and implemented a curfew, but they are now relaxing the curfew [for one night] with the cases rising even higher.
“The previous reasoning was that people who are out later are drinking and partying more and gallivanting, so if that’s the case why was yesterday so different? Regardless, I don’t think the curfew really does anything positive to reduce the COVID-19 numbers seeing how they are still on the rise. Curfews don’t seem to be working.” Mr Sawyer spoke out after the Government relaxed the curfew for election night only, pushing the start time back from 9pm to 11.59pm. No explanation was given for the extra three hours, and the curfew start time will revert to 9pm from tonight. The Prime Minister’s Office has touted curfews as a measure that will restrict COVID-19’s spread. It has been employed as a key mitigation strategy since the pandemic’s start, with many bars and restaurants forced to close early despite having licences that allow them to be open until 2am. Mr Sawyer added of the one-night curfew easing: “I don’t know what they were trying to do, but I honestly hope that in the very near future they decide to continue relaxing the curfew
because these government ministers going around talking about how they want to try and help the small
businesses, there is very little help going around. “That Small Business Development Centre is a bunch of garbage, like very
few people have ever even been accepted into their programme. I know I have applied twice and have been denied.”
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THE TRIBUNE
COVID MEASURES ‘CAN’T LAST FOREVER’ FROM PAGE ONE “We need to ride this out. Some people will sadly get sick, some people even worse, but we cannot continue to live under these restrictive measures. It’s been 18 months now. It’s exhausting and, unfortunately, appears not to be going anywhere. At some point we have to draw the line, boost healthcare services, keep our nurses and doctors happy, and try to move on with the provisions in place. “This started as a twoweek ‘flatten the curve’, and now almost two weeks later things are worse than ever. A lot more Bahamians are getting vaccinated, and are taking the protocols seriously and that’s all good, but at some point
we cannot control people for ever. At some point people make bad decisions about their health. People live anyway they want up to 9pm, and even after that live how they want.” Mr Albury argued that The Bahamas and its major industry cannot expect to fully recover if continually weighed down by COVID19 restrictions, adding: “If our tourism industry is going to continue to rebound, it’s very difficult to invite people to the country when it’s under curfew and emergency orders. “Hopefully, the new administration will look at the health travel visa and those things. It’s hurting the Family Islands. I hear a lot of people complaining that by the time they get the PCR tests and health travel
BAHAMIAN INSURERS UNDER RATING REVIEW
visas, it can be very costly for a family of three to four. We need to boost travel from the inside. There’s a lot of challenges but sitting around and hoping the situation gets better, at this stage I don’t think it’s going to work.” Mr Albury also urged the incoming administration to be a better communicator and more open to discussing the private sector’s problems, which include “dealing with the bureaucracy, dealing with all the issues that are plaguing small and medium-sized businesses and people trying to get a start”. He added that the Government’s focus on attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) had sometimes resulted in small and medium-sized FROM PAGE ONE we maintain the respective ratings, and will make a determination as to what Coralisle’s rating may look like.”
businesses “being neglected, and they’re the backbone of the economy. “Whoever wins I hope they’re going to listen to the
private sector. I think the private sector would love to be more involved as far as as giving input,” Mr Albury said. “We understand the Government needs to collect revenue, and there’s ways to do that without hurting businesses and consumers. “It’s been a very hard two years for businesses. A lot of people are suffering, a lot of people are hurting. We need a government that is sensitive to that, and understands the plight small businesses go through every single day. That’s the key, first and foremost. Hopefully it comes to pass. “It’s been a rough road for a lot of people and a lot of industries. Government tends to take it for granted that businesses are doing well....... Just because you
were elected to government doesn’t mean you know anything. Today, we need government to get involved in the sectors, find out what’s working, what isn’t working, and find out ways to give that help to the private sector,” he continued. “Bahamians don’t want programmes and hand-outs. The vast majority of Bahamians want to stand on their own two feet, and feel they have a future for themselves and their families. We need to focus on physical health, but also need to focus on financial health at the same time. We’re going to have to roll up our sleeves and get to work.”
A. M. Best, in its statement, said: “A. M. Best has placed under review with developing implications the financial strength rating of ‘A’ (excellent) and the longterm issuer credit ratings of ‘a ‘(Excellent) of Coralisle Group’s subsidiaries. “This rating action follows the Coralisle Group’s announcement on September 7, 2021, that it has
agreed to acquire a 100 percent stake in Barbados-based Massy United Insurance for $90.5m. A portion of the amount is expected to be financed and the remainder funded with cash reserves. The transaction is expected to close in early 2022 following the relevant regulatory approvals. “By acquiring Massy United, Coralisle Group
accomplishes its strategic diversification goals by expanding its geographic reach and broadening its product mix. The acquisition also gives the Coralisle Group access to Massy United’s network of agents and brokers, as well as access to commercial market clients to potentially cross-sell complementary services.”
BEN ALBURY
STRONGER SHIPPING WASTE REGULATIONS ‘READY TO GO’ FROM PAGE ONE Pan Jasmine vessel in late July. Mr Ferreira, though, said progress had been made in drafting regulations to address the disposal of ship’s waste in The Bahamas. He added that they cover all incidents that may occur when a vessel is docked or anchored in a harbour, as well as ships transiting Bahamian waters like the cruise lines. “I’m not going to lie to you,” he added. “I have written the draft regulations for that. I have them ready to go. They’re prepared and I’ve written them myself. They’re ready to go.” The now-former minister said the passage of the Ministry of the Environment Act and Department of Environmental Planning and Protection Act (DEPP) had enabled the creation of such regulations, some of which are already in effect such as the Environmental
Impact Assessment (EIA) regulations. Mr Ferreira said he was most proud of the “dozen” environmental-related laws that had been passed and enacted during his tenure in office, together with an expansion in the number of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and the outsourcing of the New Providence landfill to private sector management that has reduced the number of fires that previously plagued nearby communities. Tribune Business previously reported how the Pan Jasmine’s shipping agent suggested it would be “exonerated with the right investigation” days after multiple government agencies alleged the infested wood was offloaded without their approval. Elbert Hepburn, Elnet Maritime’s chief executive, blamed a marine logistics service provider he said failed to properly inform the Government’s Department of Environmental Health Services. He suggested the Government was looking to pin the blame for the controversy on someone, and that Elnet Maritime as a Bahamas-based company and shipping agent represented an easy target. Voicing optimism that the Asian beetles had been incinerated and destroyed, and pose no threat to Grand Bahama’s forestry product and landscape that is still trying to recover from Dorian’s ravages, Mr Hepburn said the disposal of ship slops (oils), dunnage and other waste had long been part of Freeport’s maritime industry. With trash often amounting to as much as 10-15 cubic
metres, he added that such disposals were regular work features for shipping agents and their sub-contractors plus their sub-contractors. And Mr Hepburn said they were dealing with materials “rejected by the United States” on every single occasion. Elnet Maritime was contacted to act as the Pan Jasmine’s agent by its owner/operators when it had to bunker or refuel in Freeport. He was asked “en route” if the dunnage (waste wood) could be taken off in Freeport, and contracted Lucayan Maritime Services to perform this task. The sub-contractor was supposed to obtain the necessary approvals, and make arrangements, with both the Department of Environmental Health Services (DEHS) and Sanitation Services. However, it only did so with the latter so the dunnage could be dumped in the landfill. The Pan Jasmine arrived off Freeport on Saturday, July 24, and departed on the Monday. Mr Hepburn said he only became aware of the Asian beetle incident three days later on July 29 following the voice notes and messages being issued by Mr Darville. He responded by apologising to DEHS official, Bertha McPhee-Duncanson, and followed up with Sanitation Services to ensure the wood was properly disposed of and destroyed. However, Mr Hepburn has yet to speak to Lucayan Maritime Services given that there is now an investigation ongoing.
THE TRIBUNE
Friday, September 17, 2021, PAGE 5
FORD ADDING 450 JOBS TO MEET DEMAND FOR NEW ELECTRIC TRUCK
THIS May 4, 2021 file photo shows the Federal Reserve building in Washington. The Federal Reserve said Thursday, Sept. 16, that it is reviewing its ethics policies governing senior officials’ financial holdings, in the wake of disclosures that two regional Fed presidents engaged in extensive trading last year. Photo:Patrick Semansky/AP
By MIKE HOUSEHOLDER Associated Press DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) — Ford Motor Co. plans to spend $250 million and add 450 jobs at three Michigan plants to meet demand for the new F-150 Lightning. Ford already has taken more than 150,000 reservations for the new electric version of its immensely popular F-150 pickup truck, Kumar Galhotra, Ford's president of the Americas, said during a news event Thursday. "As the orders have been coming in, as the reservations have been coming in, it was just time for us to (increase) the capacity to meet that demand," he said. Galhotra made the announcement at the new Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in the automaker's hometown of Dearborn, where the first pre-production trucks are being made. Ford provided tours of the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center to members of the media as well as government officials, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who said the facility "will be a place where the future is determined and built by the hard-working men and women of the UAW." Ford officials hope the F-150 Lightning will be the catalyst that hastens America's transition from gasoline to battery-powered vehicles. The new truck, which will be available to customers by next spring, will be able to travel up to 300 miles (480 kilometers) per battery charge and carries a starting price of around $40,000.
FED REVIEWS ETHICS POLICIES AFTER PROLIFIC TRADING UNCOVERED By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve is reviewing the ethics policies that govern the financial holdings and activities of its senior officials in the wake of recent disclosures that two regional Fed presidents engaged in extensive trading last year. Robert Kaplan, president of the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank, in 2020 traded millions of dollars of stock in companies such as Apple, Amazon, and Google, while Eric Rosengren, president of the Boston Fed, traded in stocks and real estate investment trusts, according to financial disclosure forms. Both pledged last week to divest those holdings after they were reported by The Wall Street Journal. Comments made by Fed regional presidents can move markets and they have a hand in the Fed’s interest rate policies. Such high-placed officials often have exclusive access to discussions about upcoming policy shifts that could benefit or be detrimental to some economic sectors, though they are prohibited
from trading on that knowledge and are unable to trade in the period leading up to Fed meetings. Both Kaplan and Rosengren said last week that their trades were permitted under the Fed’s ethics rules. But they also said they would sell their holdings the end of this month and place the money in index funds, which track a wide range of securities, or in cash. Still, the trades occurred last year when the Fed took extraordinary steps to buoy the U.S. economy and stabilize financial markets during the pandemic. The central bank cut its short-term benchmark interest rate to zero in March 2020 and has since purchased trillions of dollars in Treasury securities and mortgage-backed bonds to hold down longer-term interest rates. One impact of those policies has been to make stocks a more attractive investment relative to bonds, which provide very little return when interest rates are low. The Fed has come under criticism for worsening wealth inequality by pushing up the value of stock portfolios.
The Fed’s purchase of mortgagebacked bonds, which are issued by mortgage buyers such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, has been criticized by some other regional bank presidents for contributing to the run-up in home prices in the past year. One investment that Rosengren made was in real estate investment trust Annaly Capital Management, which also purchased those same securities. In a prepared statement Thursday, the Fed said that Chair Jerome Powell late last week requested a “fresh and comprehensive look at the ethics rules around permissible financial holdings and activities by senior Fed officials.” The statement came after letters were sent Wednesday by Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, to all 12 regional Fed banks, urging that they ban the ownership of stocks by senior officials. “The controversy over asset trading by high-level Fed personnel highlights why it is necessary to ban ownership and trading of individual stocks by senior officials who are supposed to serve the public
interest,” Warren’s letter said. Warren has introduced legislation that would bar stock ownership by members of Congress, Cabinet Secretaries, and other high-ranking officials. Under the Fed’s complex structure, the 12 regional banks are chartered as private organizations but are overseen by the Federal Reserve’s board in Washington, known as the Board of Governors. The regional banks have their own codes of conduct, though they are largely identical to the rules that govern the Fed’s board. The Board of Governors follows the same rules on investing and trading as other government agencies, but also follows additional rules “that are stricter than those that apply to Congress and other agencies,” the Fed said Thursday. Fed officials, for example, cannot invest in banks, many of which are supervised by the Fed. They are also prohibited from making trades during a roughly 10-day period before each Fed meeting, and are not supposed to hold a security for less than 30 days.
US WILL GIVE RUNWAY RIGHTS AT NJ AIRPORT TO A BUDGET AIRLINE WASHINGTON Associated Press THE Transportation Department said Thursday it will give rights for several afternoon and evening flights in Newark, New Jersey, to a budget airline to drive down fares. The coveted takeoff and landing rights were previously used by Southwest Airlines, which pulled out
IN this Jan. 19, 2021 file photo, a Spirit Airlines Airbus A320 takes off from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The budget airline will get a chance to add flights at the busy airport in Newark, New Jersey, just outside New York City. The Transportation Department said Thursday that it will give coveted afternoon and evening runway rights to a low-cost airline. Photo:Wilfredo Lee/AP
of Newark Liberty International Airport in 2019 and consolidated its New York City-area operations at LaGuardia Airport. The Transportation Department said Thursday that it plans to allow a single low-cost or ultralow-cost carrier to use the Southwest runway slots, which are enough for eight daily round-trip flights. Deputy Transportation
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that SHAWN EMILE of Golden Isles, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 10th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
Secretary Polly Trottenberg said the move will give travelers more choices and lower prices.
The decision follows a federal court victory earlier this year by Spirit Airlines over the Federal Aviation
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that JESSICA JEAN LOUIS of Roosevelt Avenue, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 10th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that FRANKIE EMILE of Golden Isles, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 10th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
Administration. Spirit, which wants to expand at Newark, sued after the FAA originally planned to eliminate the Southwest takeoff and landing rights. The FAA said retiring the Southwest slots would reduce congestion. New York-based JetBlue praised the decision to offer the slights to a low-cost carrier and said it plans to apply. “JetBlue has long advocated for more opportunities which will allow
smaller carriers to grow and compete against legacy carriers — particularly at congested airports across greater New York City,” said an airline spokesman, Philip Stewart. “One of the most common requests from our customers is more JetBlue service at the New York metro area’s three major airports.” Spirit and other U.S. discount airlines that operate at Newark declined to comment or did not immediately respond.
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THE TRIBUNE
STOCKS END LOWER AFTER A BRIEF AFTERNOON RECOVERY FADES By DAMIAN J. TROISE AND ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers ANOTHER day of choppy trading on Wall Street left stocks mostly lower, cutting into the major indexes’ gains for the week. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each lost about 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq managed to eke out a gain of 0.1%. More stocks fell than rose in the S&P 500, and most of the benchmark index’s sectors took slight losses. The market had edged higher in the early going after a surprisingly good retail sales report for August, but then quickly turned lower and remained there for much of the day. By late afternoon, major
indexes had clawed back the ground they lost earlier and turned slightly higher, only to shed some of those gains in the final minutes of trading. Markets have been choppy as investors shift money between various sectors while they parse any data coming out that could give more clues and signals on the potential direction of the economy and how the Federal Reserve will react. The central bank will meet next week, and investors will listen closely for any comments about when and how much it will taper support for low interest rates that have helped fuel gains for stocks throughout the year. “What you’re seeing over the last month has been hesitation to really commit,”
IN this Jan. 27, 2021 file photo, pedestrians pass the New York Stock Exchange, in New York. Stocks were off to a mixed start on Wall Street Thursday, Sept. 16, as gains for retailers are offset by drops in technology and materials companies. Photo:John Minchillo/AP
said J.J. Kinahan, chief strategist with TD Ameritrade. “Until we have more clarity from the Fed, the pattern will continue.” The S&P 500 fell 6.95 points to 4,473.75. The index remains within 1.4% of the all-time high it set on
Sept. 2. The Dow dropped 63.07 points to 34,751.32, while the Nasdaq added 20.39 points to 15,181.92. Small company stocks also gave up some ground. The Russell 2000 index slipped 1.54 points, or 0.1%, to 2,232.91.
Investors were given another mixed bag of economic data to review as they try to gauge the economic recovery’s path ahead amid the virus pandemic, inflation and other factors. The Commerce Department reported that retail sales rose 0.7% last month. Economists had expected a 0.85% contraction over concerns that people would have pulled back on spending as the highly contagious delta variant of COVID-19 prompts consumers to pull back on shopping. Consumers simply shifted spending to more online purchases and away from
businesses that are still struggling to recover from the pandemic, including restaurants and other business that rely on in-person spending. Wall Street also weighed a disappointing report showing that weekly unemployment claims rose more than expected. Industrial, health care and raw materials companies were the biggest drag on the S&P 500. Deere & Co. fell 1.2%, Eli Lilly dropped 1.2% and Freeport-McMoRan slid 6.6%, the biggest drop in among S&P 500 companies.
McConnell unmoved on debt limit, risking turmoil for Biden By KEVIN FREKING AND LISA MASCARO Associated Press
IN this July 11, 2021 file photo, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during a press conference at a G20 Economy, Finance ministers and Central bank governors’ meeting in Venice, Italy. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has warned Yellen he is not budging on his demand that Democrats go it alone on the federal debt limit, deepening the emerging standoff in Congress over how to boost the government’s borrowing authority. Photo:Luca Bruno/AP
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has been enlisting one emissary after another to convince Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell to help raise the federal debt limit. It’s not working. Despite the high-level conversations, including a call from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the GOP leader is digging in and playing political hardball. He’s telling all who will listen that it’s up to the Democrats, who have narrow control of Congress, to take the unpopular vote over federal borrowing on their own. McConnell’s stance is deepening a political standoff and risking turbulence in the financial markets that could ripple into the broader economy. His
refusal to rally Republican votes leaves Democrats with only tough choices as they rush to ensure the nation does not default on any of its accumulated debt, which now stands at $28.4 trillion. President Joe Biden and the Democratic leaders, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, are scheduled to speak Thursday afternoon. While there is little doubt the Democrats will be able to avert a crisis and vote to allow additional borrowing, the path ahead is uncertain and potentially treacherous. “We are working, there are a number of different options,” Schumer told reporters earlier this week at the Capitol. “We will do it because its imperative to do it. And Leader McConnell, as I said, is playing dangerous political games by not stepping up to the plate.” The showdown is sparking a fiscal battle that is reminiscent, but different, from those that have set Washington and Wall Street on edge at times over the past decade. Unlike the brinksmanship of past battles, this one is unique in that there is no deal to be brokered — McConnell simply will not participate. Late Wednesday, McConnell warned Yellen he is not changing his mind. “The leader repeated to Secretary Yellen what he has said publicly since July,” said McConnell spokesman Doug Andres. “They will have to raise the debt ceiling on their own and they have the tools to do it.” It was a similar situation Tuesday when Hank Paulson, who was Treasury secretary in the Bush administration, paid
McConnell a visit at the Capitol. Other intermediaries have also reached out, according to a person familiar with the talks and granted anonymity to discuss them. Lawmakers appear to have only a few weeks to devise a plan for approving the federal government’s debt limit before the U.S. Treasury is forced to delay or miss payments. Stocks and bonds have been relatively calm recently, indicating investors expect Washington will ultimately reach a deal on the debt ceiling. The S&P 500 remains within 2% of its record set two weeks ago, and prices in the bond market are moving more on reports about the economy and inflation. But the ride could get bumpier in coming weeks. Because they’re seen as the world’s safest possible investments, U.S. Treasury bills and bonds form the bedrock for financial markets. So a default on the U.S. debt would quickly cascade through markets around the world. Treasury spokeswoman Lily Adams said in statement Thursday, “Secretary Yellen will continue to talk to Republicans and Democrats about the critical need to swiftly address the debt ceiling in a bipartisan manner, to avoid the catastrophic economic consequences of default.” The debt limit caps the amount of money Treasury can borrow to keep the government running and pay its debts. Once a routine task in Congress that brought grumbling from lawmakers but not high-stakes opposition, votes to increase or suspend the debt ceiling are now often contentious.
NOTICE
NOTICE is hereby given that BRANDON ABSOLU of Treasure Cay, Abaco, The Bahamas P.O. Box CR-56302is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 10th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.
NOTICE NOTICE is hereby given that SHAWNA EMILE of Golden Isles, Nassau, The Bahamas is applying to the Minister responsible for Nationality and Citizenship, for Registration Naturalization as a citizen of The Bahamas, and that any person who knows any reason why registration/naturalization should not be granted, should send a written and signed statement of the facts within twenty-eight days from the 10th day of September, 2021 to the Minister responsible for nationality and Citizenship, P.O. Box N-7147, Nassau, New Providence, The Bahamas.