BOJ Governor Says Prospects for Economy Remain Positive

• Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) Governor, Richard Byles, says prospects for the economy remain positive.
• Speaking at the Central Bank’s quarterly briefing at the BOJ in downtown Kingston, the newly appointed Governor said the positive outlook remains, despite “headwinds” and “clouds of uncertainty” arising from the global economy.
• “Domestic economic activity continues to show signs of recovery, although at a slower pace than earlier observed,” he noted.
• The Governor added that foreign reserves are at “adequate levels”, the current account of the balance of payments is in a “sustainable position”, the fiscal performance is “strong”, public debt continues to decline at a “steady pace” and market rates remain “generally low”.
• “The near-term outlook is for real gross domestic product (GDP) to expand at an average quarterly rate of 1% to 2%, which is below the previous projection for a quarterly expansion of 1.5% to 2.5%,” he said.
• Consequently, Mr. Byles said the output gap, being growth relative to Jamaica’s economic capacity, will be wider than previously expected, suggesting that inflationary pressures “will, largely, remain contained over the next eight quarters”.

 (Source: JIS)