GK, Scotia seal loan deal
IN A deal worth $1.875 billion, conglomerate GraceKennedy Limited has secured financing to replace short-term bridge capital that was poured into its new warehousing and distribution hub under development on lands at Bernard Lodge, on the outskirts of Spanish Town...
CEO position unfilled - First Global regroups with new team members
IAN KELLY, the former head of RBTT Securities, has joined First Global's management team as senior vice-president, asset management and advisory services, at First Global Financial Services Limited (FGFS), one of five new appointments...
Jamaica, World Bank working on coffee insurance scheme
THE WORLD Bank has agreed to back a feasibility study on a crop insurance scheme for Jamaican coffee farmers, whose fields have been without coverage for more than five years after sole insurer Dyoll collapsed under storm damage claims it could not...
Bolt to sell tourism
BANKING ON his international star power to sell hotel rooms and attractions, Jamaica has invested US$420,000 to develop and produce the 'Usain Bolt Jamaica Advertising Campaign' to market its tourism product overseas. It would have cost more, but Bolt...
UDC buys new HQ in deal with KRC
THE URBAN Development Corporation (UDC) has bought the old Machado complex in Kingston for $80 million, which it will convert into its new headquarters. UDC General Manager Joy Douglas, who confirmed the purchase, said the agency acquired the property,...
Ultra-low confidence in home market - But realtors certain a rebound is ahead
INDUSTRY PLAYERS in real estate are still upbeat that 2010 will see an improvement in the market on expectations that the cost of borrowing will become cheaper as interest rates trend downwards. This, despite reports that consumer confidence...
Unit trust market showing signs of resurgence - But still underperforms pre-crisis periods
JAMAICA'S INVESTMENT houses have stepped up their push of unit trust products as a fairly safe alternative to stocks and fixed-income securities whose yields are constrained by economic uncertainty and a push to lower interest rates...
Pension fund trustees exposed by JDX - Lawyers warn of legal challenges
THE BRUCE Golding administration has suggested that all is well with the Jamaica Debt Exchange (JDX) and, further, that all the major institutional players are on-board with the initiative, but there are serious concerns being raised privately in the community...
Commentary - A bit of advice for Justice Carey
I HAVE known eminent retired Jamaican jurist Boyd Carey for many years. We met through a mutual friend, the late H.I. McKenzie - a Mwalimu, or teacher, a sociologist who deeply understood, among other things, Caribbean social structure, family norms and links among lifestyles...
JDX, tax packages will compress economy, says PwC expert
THE DEBT exchange and new taxation charges will result in a compression of the economy and an effective reduction of revenues from taxation, according to tax expert Brian Denning, who says the fiscal initiatives announced in the past nine months would...
Letter - FSSF shouldbe no surprise
JUST READ your article online. It is amazing that the size of the Financial Sector Support Fund (FSSF) comes as a surprise for players in the finan-cial system in Jamaica...
Tighter squeeze on bank pay
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, in a broad riposte to excess, told a room full of international bankers and CEOs just what they did not want to hear: Brace for bonus curbs, tighter banking regulations and new bookkeeping rules.It was a brazen posture...