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Construction finds a regulatory home

By Simon Cooper Res Socius Some things are really strange. We have guarantees for just about everything these days, and that even includes a notice promising that some biscuits have never seen a nut before - unless, of course, the factory owner went craz

'Aggressive' insurer targets the Bahamas

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor An "aggressive" St Maarten-headquartered underwriter has caused a stir in the Bahamian general insurance market after obtaining regulatory approval to write business in this nation, Tribune Business can reveal, a

GB POWER PLANT 'OVER 60% DONE'

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor Grand Bahama Power Company yesterday said its new generation plant is "more than 60 per cent complete" after a $40 million investment to-date, as the BISX-listed company that holds 50 per cent of its equity unveil

Less than 1/4 of NIB pension recipients come from poorest 20%

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor Fewer than one in four Bahamians receiving a National Insurance Board (NIB) non-contributory pension come from the poorest 20 per cent of society, an Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) report disclosing that pl

Bahamasair reduces staff 12% in 5 years

Bahamasair reduces staff 12% in 5 years By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor Bahamasair has reduced staff levels through "natural attrition" by more than 12 per cent over the past five years, Tribune Business was told yesterday, while improving its

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FUND 'BELOW PAR' AFTER 50% VACANCY CUT FAILURE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamas Property Fund's failure to cut the 20 per cent vacancy rate at its flagship Bahamas Financial Centre by half meant its 2011 performance fell "slightly below expectations", although last May's Bahamian

Tourism ‘softness’ exposed with 7% room revenue fall

Tourism “softness” resulted in a 7 per cent year-over-year decline in peak winter room revenues for Nassau’s major hotels, with both occupancies and pricing coming under pressure.

Skills transfer woe still a ‘sad reality’

The Bahamas must change “the sad reality” that key skills and knowledge are not being passed on to local workers by expatriate work permit holders, a prominent contractor argued yesterday.

Labour quality 'compromised' roads project

Labour quality 'compromised' roads project By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) yesterday accused the main contractor working on the $113 million New Providence Road Improvement Project (NPRIP) of using "poorly tr

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Gov’t agrees ‘few hundred thousand’ in VAT credits

The Government has approved “several hundred thousand dollars” of Value-Added Tax (VAT) credit refunds, a top official yesterday promising that businesses would not endure “a protracted wait” to receive them.

Tax crackdown: Govt hits 6,000 businesses, 5,000 property owners

The Government last night unveiled its promised crackdown on tax defaulters, promising to first pursue the largest, wealthiest delinquents - some 6,000 businesses and 5,000 high-end property owners.

Tax delinquents warned to brace for ‘shock treatment’

Major tax defaulters were yesterday warned to brace for “shock treatment” from the Government’s recently-unveiled tax crackdown, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce’s (BCCEC) chairman giving his “strong support” to the initiative.

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Baha May delay’s 50% cut to growth

Baha Mar’s delayed opening could potentially slash 50 per cent off the Bahamas’ 2015 economic growth forecast, a well-known businessman has warned.

PM 'elated' over 75% Our Lucaya occupancy level

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Prime Minister said he was "elated" upon learning that Our Lucaya's current occupancy levels were at 75 per cent, adding that an owner other than Hutchison Whampoa would likely have closed the Freeport resort.

MSC cruise port: No lease agreement yet

No agreement has yet been reached to transfer the lease of Ocean Cay to Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) for its private cruise port, with the current holder saying of the project: "It won't be done overnight."

74% 'PERSONAL' CREDIT IMPEDES DEVELOPMENT

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamas' development is being "seriously impacted" because its citizens are unable to invest in key productive areas, such as energy and transportation, due to almost 74 per cent of credit going on 'personal'

Bahamas ranked in bottom three of finance centres

A FORMER Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) chairman yesterday said a report that ranked the Bahamas a lowly 75th out of 77 global financial centres would "not impact" this jurisdiction's core private wealth management client base, adding that he was "more worried" about G-20 driven regulatory initiatives.

Hotels to beat eight-year rate recovery target

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamas Hotel Association's (BHA) president believes the industry will return room "rates to pre-recession levels much faster" than the world average, after a renowned travel research firm said this could take

Hotels to beat eight-year rate recovery target

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamas Hotel Association's (BHA) president believes the industry will return room "rates to pre-recession levels much faster" than the world average, after a renowned travel research firm said this could take

Hotels to beat eight-year rate recovery target

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamas Hotel Association's (BHA) president believes the industry will return room "rates to pre-recession levels much faster" than the world average, after a renowned travel research firm said this could take