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Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Anthony Hylton, is appealing to exporters to take advantage of the loan facility being offered by the National Export-Import Bank of Jamaica Limited (EX-IM Bank), to modernise and upgrade their plants. He noted that through the EX-IM loan, business owners can borrow up to the Jamaican equivalent of US$500,000 for the purchase of...

Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says the government will be looking to remove more posts from the public sector before the end of the year. This is in addition to 3,100 posts that are to go soon, as part of measures to reduce the public sector wage bill in keeping with the overall debt reduction strategy....

The Government is seeking to encourage overseas companies to establish their head offices in Jamaica, through a Bill that exempts officers of such companies from the payment of income tax. The Bill Income Tax (Amendment) Act was tabled during Tuesday's (Sept. 18) sitting of the House of Representatives. According to the Memorandum of Objects and Reasons, the Bill exempts persons,...

Commissioner of Customs, Major Richard Reese, says the Customs Department has seized over $1 billion worth of illicit items, at the island’s air and sea ports, since the start of the year. The seizures include significant quantities of narcotics, guns and ammunition, counterfeit cigarettes, and various articles associated with the lottery scam, including debit and credit cards. Outlining details of...

A team of officials from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is scheduled to arrive in Jamaica this weekend for further negotiations with the government towards drafting a new agreement. Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, informed that talks will commence on Monday (September 24) and the team will be in the island until October 5 for...

Finance and Planning Minister, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips says the implementation of pension reform will have to begin this fiscal year. Dr. Phillips, who was speaking to JIS News in an interview on September 14, said the reform, which is an essential element of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreement, now under consideration, will likely begin early in the...

Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. The Hon. Peter Phillips, has emphasised that the country cannot persist with spending 80 per cent of the budget on wages and debt payments. "This is what we mean when we say the debt stifles the country's potential for development, because it is the 20 cents that remain out of each dollar that is...

Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says there is no delay in the drafting of a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), noting that the timetable for discussion remains on track. He was responding to questions posed by Leader of the Opposition, Andrew Holness, during the sitting of the House of Representatives on September...

Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips, says despite the challenges, the Government expects real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth for the July to September 2012 quarter. "This growth will be supported by a tempering in the rate of decline for transport and communication, as the impact of the sale of Air Jamaica cycles out," Dr. Phillips...

Lecturer in the Department of Economics, University of the West Indies, Collin Bullock, is suggesting that the Government target wealthy tax evaders as it embarks on tax reform measures. “We need to go after some of the large delinquents (and) make examples of them to show that nobody is above the law,” Mr. Bullock stated during a recent interview with...

Lecturer in the Department of Economics at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, Collin Bullock, says it is important that the country secures a “seal of approval” from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), to ensure it continues to receive financial support from the international community. "The Finance and Planning Minister (Dr. the Hon. Peter Phillips) said recently that...

Bank of Jamaica (BoJ) Governor, Brian Wynter, says Jamaica’s reserves remain comfortably above the international benchmark of 12 weeks of imports of goods and services. This, he said, is despite the Bank’s intervention in the local foreign exchange market to cover higher net demand for current account transactions, which net private capital inflows were insufficient to meet. He was speaking...