All results / Stories / Neil Hartnell

Just 12% of mortgages finance 'new buildings'

New Central Bank of the Bahamas date has provided a further insight into the sluggish home construction market, with just 12 per cent of mortgage applications involving 'new builds'.

SUPERVALUE IN 'OVER 20%' XMAS SALES RISE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Supervalue supermarket chain saw a more than 20 per cent year-over-year increase in its Christmas sales figures, its owner and president telling Tribune Business yesterday the company was likely to invest a fu

Bermuda learns from Arawak Port project

Arawak Port Development Company (APD) executives recently hosted Bermuda government officials on a tour of the $83 million Nassau Container Port and Gladstone Freight Terminal. Marc A.R. Bean, Bermuda's minister of environment, planning and infrastruct

Bahamas exports decline by 36% to five-year low

The Bahamas’ merchandise trade deficit fell by 12.3 per cent in 2015 to $2.719 billion, as the decline in imports offset a more than one-third reduction in exports.

DESPITE 41% OF HOTELS SUFFERING 2011 LOSS, MOST POSITIVE FOR 2012

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor Although more than half of this nation's hotels are positive on their 2012 outlook some 41 per cent still suffered a net loss last year, the Bahamas Hotel Association (BHA) yesterday unveiling a survey that was ti

DESPITE 41% OF HOTELS SUFFERING 2011 LOSS, MOST POSITIVE FOR 2012

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor Although more than half of this nation's hotels are positive on their 2012 outlook some 41 per cent still suffered a net loss last year, the Bahamas Hotel Association (BHA) yesterday unveiling a survey that was ti

Tease photo

BTC to complete Abaco cell overhaul in mid-May

THE Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) is set to complete its wireless system overhaul on Abaco and the northern Bahamas by mid-May, giving customers improved cellular service, including faster speeds for downloads and browsing on smart phones.

BAHAMAS URGED: ADDRESS FINANCIAL LAW WEAKNESSES

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The US government has again urged the Bahamas to strengthen its anti-terror financing laws and make membership of organised criminal gangs a criminal offence, according to a recently-released US State Department r

$500M REVENUE RISE NO FISCAL GAP BRIDGE

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Government's annual fiscal deficit averaged more than $170 million during the 2002-2008 'economic boom' years despite an almost $500 million rise in revenues over that period, showing that reining in out-of-co

Tease photo

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.

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

Tease photo

'Madness': 90% of loan requests are consumer

The Bahamas' consumer loan "madness" is making sustainable economic development impossible, as more than nine out of every 10 credit applications fall into this category.

Tease photo

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.

Tease photo

CWC: BTC ‘lags’ region despite $75m investment

The Bahamas Telecommunications Company’s (BTC) controlling owner yesterday conceded that its network quality “lags” much of the Caribbean and wider world, despite increasing its capital investment by 47 per cent last year.

Tease photo

Car Show 'bounce' in 83-100% sales growth

BAHAMIAN new car dealers yesterday revealed that the Car Show "bounce" appeared to have returned in 2012, with April's sales up between 83-100 per cent month-over-month compared to March.

PM cuts 2016 GDP growth to just 0.5%

Prime Minister Perry Christie yesterday slashed a full percentage point off the Bahamas’ projected economic growth for 2016, cutting real GDP expansion estimates to just 0.5 per cent.

Gas station warning of New Year lay-offs

A gas station operator yesterday warned the 24 percent minimum wage increase will “almost certainly” force the sector to cut staffing levels unless the Government grants a long-awaited margin increase.

FAMILIES EARNING UNDER $5K YEARLY INCREASE BY 83%

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The number of Bahamian households surviving on less than $5,000 per year has increased by an "alarming" 83 per cent in the past four years, Department of Statistics data shows, indicating the recession has most im

Caribbean hotel rivals beat Bahamas' 5% RevPAR rise

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamian hotel industry's 5 per cent revenue per room (RevPAR) increase for the first nine months in 2011 was overshadowed by greater rises in many Caribbean competitors, as an industry consultant yesterday to

Caribbean hotel rivals beat Bahamas' 5% RevPAR rise

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor The Bahamian hotel industry's 5 per cent revenue per room (RevPAR) increase for the first nine months in 2011 was overshadowed by greater rises in many Caribbean competitors, as an industry consultant yesterday to