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Prime Minister Bruce Golding said data released by STATIN yesterday (Oct 6) showed that the Jamaican economy has grown by 2.1 percent in the second quarter of the year which is above the Government’s projection of 1.5 percent. In a statement today (Oct. 7), the Prime Minister said the growth is evidence that that the process of economic recovery is continuing. Mr...

KINGSTON — The Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) continues to meet the needs of the poor and vulnerable, approving a record 166 sub-projects during the last financial year at a cost of some $1.26 billion. Outgoing Acting Chairman, Patricia Sutherland, made the disclosure at the agency’s 15th Annual General Meeting held on October 5th at the Jamaica Pegasus hotel in...

KINGSTON — The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Jamaica (ICAJ) is proposing the application of a flat tax rate for operators in the informal sector as an equitable and efficient strategy to improve tax compliance. Vice President of the organisation and Tax Consultant, Ethlyn Norton-Coke, who made the submission during a meeting of the Committee on Tax Measures on October...

KINGSTON — Finance Minister, Hon. Audley Shaw, says efforts by the Ministry, Jamaica Customs, and Tax Administration, will be intensified in coming months, in response to the persistent problem of under-invoicing and other nefarious means used by some importers to defraud the treasury of billions of dollars. Addressing a Customs Seminar convened by the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce at the...

KINGSTON — Effective Friday, September 30, the interest rate payable on the Bank of Jamaica’s (BOJ) 30-day Certificates of Deposit (CD) has been reduced from 6.50 percent to 6.25 percent. The 30-day CD rate reflects the Bank’s bench mark interest rate and the latest adjustment represents a 25 basis points reduction. The current rate of 6.25 percent represents a record...

KINGSTON — The latest remittance report released by the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ), dated September 2011 for the month of July, disclosed that net remittances for the month were US$149.7 million, which represented an improvement of US$15.1 million or 11.2 per cent relative to the corresponding period of 2010. According to the BOJ this resulted from an increase in gross...

KINGSTON — Head of Delegation of the European Union (EU) in Jamaica, Ambassador Marco Mazzocchi Alemanni, has called on private and public sector stakeholders to commit to measures to effect tax reforms and contain wage increases to achieve macroeconomic targets. He argued that a strong commitment to these two measures “could be, I believe, an excellent incentive to the IDPs...

KINGSTON — Minister of Finance, Hon. Audley Shaw, says the recent surge of interest in investing in the redevelopment of downtown Kingston was not surprising, as it reflects the return of business confidence, now that macro-economic stability has been realized. Addressing the Urban Development Corporation (UDC)/Scotia Bank Investment Forum, at the Jamaica Conference, Thursday September 22, Mr. Shaw emphasized that,...

KINGSTON — World Bank Executive, Denis Medvedev, has disclosed that the Bank’s US$100 million Second Fiscal Sustainability Development Policy Loan (DPL) to Jamaica was specially tailored to ease the repayment schedule, while ensuring that the qualitative targets are met. In a radio interview on Thursday, September 15, the World Bank Representative explained that the Bank was able to customize the...

KINGSTON — Minister of Finance, Hon. Audley Shaw, says the administration continues to embark on a number of transparency and anti-corruption measures to enhance accountability in government. The Minister, who was addressing the launch of the Business Ethics Programme for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) today (Sept. 14) at the Wyndham Hotel in New Kingston, cited the establishment of the...

KINGSTON — Minister of Finance, Hon. Audley Shaw says the government now has a 95 per cent compliance rate in all performance measures it is required to fulfill under its agreements with its multilateral partners. Mr. Shaw said the government had a combined total of about 100 performance guidelines it is expected to meet based on its relationship with several...

KINGSTON — Governor of the Bank of Jamaica, Brian Wynter, says while it is early days for the productive sectors to reflect strong growth momentum, the return to economic stability along with conditions conducive to positive growth, is a significant achievement. Mr. Wynter was responding to questions following his presentation at a Luncheon Forum of the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce...