• Oil prices jumped by 3% on Tuesday, November 29 on hopes for a relaxation of China's strict COVID-19 controls after rare protests in Chinese cities over the weekend.
• Brent crude futures gained $2.50, or 3%, to $85.69 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose $1.98, or 2.6%, to $79.22.
• Chinese health officials on Tuesday said the country plans to speed up COVID-19 vaccinations for elderly people, aiming to overcome a key stumbling block in efforts to ease unpopular "zero-COVID" curbs.
• "The prospect of a return to normality, in an economy that is the world's largest oil importer, was enough to make oil prices jump in the first significant price rebound of the last two weeks," said ActivTrades analyst Ricardo Evangelista.
• Rare street protests in cities across China over the weekend were a vote against President Xi Jinping's zero-COVID policy and the strongest public defiance of his political career, China analysts said.

(Source: Reuters)

• For January to July 2022, Jamaica’s total spending on imports was valued at US$4,411.2 million, which represents a 33.6% increase relative to the period in 2021. This increase was largely attributable to higher imports of “Fuels and Lubricant”, “Raw Materials/Intermediate Goods” and “Consumer Goods”, which rose by 55.4%, 29.8% and 31.0%, respectively.
• Meanwhile, exports were valued at US$939.7 million which is a 2.3% increase relative to the prior period. The increase in exports was due primarily to a 61.8% increase in the value of exports of “Mineral Fuels”. The increase in total exports was influenced by the growth in re-exports which increased by US$59.4 million to US$172.7 million.
• The top five main import- partners for the period were the United States of America (USA), China, Trinidad and Tobago, Brazil and Japan. Imports from these countries rose to US$2,887.8 million, 39.6% above the US$2,068.8 million recorded in the corresponding period of 2021. This was due largely to the higher imports of fuel from the USA and Trinidad and Tobago.
• The top five destinations for Jamaica’s exports were the USA, Puerto Rico, Canada, the Russian Federation and the United Kingdom. Revenues from exports to these countries increased by 32.0% to US$752.0 million mainly as a result of higher exports of fuels to the USA. This higher outturn for exports should help with the narrowing of Jamaica’s trade deficit.

(Source: STATIN)

• The Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries is reporting growth of 17.4% for the third quarter of the year, from July to September. Portfolio Minister, Hon. Pearnel Charles Jr., in making the disclosure in a release recently, said that the outturn represents six consecutive quarters of growth since the second quarter of 2021.
• “Our agriculture sector has been achieving unprecedented numbers since the start of the year, with the third quarter reflecting one of the best-performing quarters on record,” he said. Minister Charles Jr. noted that recent heavy rains associated with the passage of Tropical Storm Ian in late September did not significantly impact the overall output for the third quarter.
• “Gross output for the subsector for the third quarter of 2022 amounted to 214,599.2 tonnes, in comparison to 182,750 tonnes reaped in the similar period of 2021,” he said
• Meanwhile, the Ministry reported that the domestic crop subsector continues to perform well in response to increased investment and support, based on targeted interventions in productivity and marketing.

(Source: JIS News)

• Fitch Solutions maintains its view that real GDP growth in Peru will reach 2.7% in 2022. Growth came in at 1.7% y-o-y in Q3 2022, in line with consensus expectations and a modest slowdown from Q2 2022’s 3.3% print.
• Economic activity was fueled by a sixth round of pension withdrawals in June, which drove stronger domestic demand than in Q2 2022. However, still-weak demand from China for Peruvian copper yielded a contraction in mining sector activity, slowing overall growth during the quarter.
• While activity will continue to moderate in the coming quarters, the Peruvian economy is still expected to grow by 2.5% in 2023, the strongest performance of the region’s major economies for the year.
• The growth will be driven by private consumption which will contribute 2.3 percentage points (pp) to headline growth in 2023, from 4.1pp in 2022 as well as investment growth which is expected to remain largely stable in 2023, contributing 2.4pp to headline growth compared to 2.3 in 2022, as the BCRP begins cutting its interest rate and pro-business policy is preserved by legislative gridlock.
• In addition, the introduction of a new president is anticipated to have a more severe impact on policy direction, including the introduction of less business-friendly initiatives, which would undermine investor confidence and drag on headline growth.

(Source: Fitch Solutions)

• The IMF has projected that the economy of St Vincent and the Grenadines will grow by 5% in 2022, supported by large-scale investment projects and recoveries in tourism and agriculture.
• The Fund made this disclosure at the conclusion of the Article IV Consultation on November 14. Growth is projected to strengthen further to 6% in 2023 as large-scale construction projects get into full swing. 
• The output decline in 2020 was the lowest in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) and the economy is estimated to have grown by 0.8% in 2021 supported by strong post-volcanic eruption reconstruction activity. However, external inflation pressures are expected to raise the annual inflation to 5.8% in 2022.
• While the primary deficit is estimated to widen as the port construction starts, the primary balance excluding pandemic, volcano, and port-related spending is expected to improve from -0.4% of GDP in 2021 to 1.6% in 2022.
• The outlook is subject to significant downside risks, stemming primarily from an abrupt slowdown in trading partners’ growth, and potential delays in investment projects due to supply chain disruptions, and natural disasters.

(Source: CARICOM Business)

• Tough new sanctions on Russian oil shipments taking effect from December are likely to boost already high tanker rates as buyers race to replace cargoes and are forced to use longer routes, a leading ship manager said.
• In the latest action against Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine that began in February, the European Union will ban Russian crude imports from Dec 5, and Russian oil products from Feb 5.
• Designed to deprive Moscow of revenues that could finance its action in Ukraine, the measures will force one of the world's top oil producers and exporters to seek alternative buyers further afield.
• Maersk Tankers Chief Executive Christian M. Ingerslev told Reuters he expected demand to be healthy as Russian oil continues to flow but to different markets.
• "With new sanctions coming into place, we expect that Russian oil will continue to be moved. But now the importing countries will not have the short haul distance, it will be a long haul," he said.
• Freight rates have hit record highs in recent weeks and analysts expect them to stay supported for both crude and oil products tankers, potentially driving inflation that has hit multi-decade highs. Ingerslev said the conditions had prompted ship owners from other segments such as dry bulk to invest in tanker assets.

(Source: Reuters)

• Bank lending to eurozone companies held steady, maintaining the sector's biggest borrowing binge in over a decade, despite rising interest rates and a looming recession, European Central Bank data showed on Monday, November 28.
• Lending to businesses in the 19-country euro area expanded by 8.9% in October, unchanged from September when it rose to its highest rate since early 2009, fresh data showed. Household credit growth meanwhile slowed to 4.2% from 4.4%.
• The monthly flow of loans to companies, however, slowed sharply, to 24.0Bn euros from 36.6Bn a month earlier with the flow of short-term loans coming to a standstill.
• Growth in the M3 measure of money circulating in the eurozone, meanwhile slowed to 5.1% from 6.3%, coming below Reuters expectations of 6.2%.

(Source: Reuters)

• Two iconic Jamaican conglomerates, Jamaica Producers Group Limited (‘JP’) and PanJam Investment Limited (‘PanJam’), announced that they reached an agreement that will see the amalgamation of their businesses to create a powerful new group of companies, strategically-positioned to take advantage of opportunities both locally and globally.
• JP was founded as a co-operative of banana growers over 90 years ago but has since emerged as a group that owns food and juice brands along with logistics and shipping services. PanJam is an investment holding company comprising a wholly-owned property management business and investor partnerships in insurance, tourism and attraction development, manufacturing, and real estate development.
• This arrangement, subject to the approval of the shareholders of both companies and the relevant regulators, will result in PanJam acquiring JP’s operating assets in exchange for JP taking a 34.5% interest in PanJam.
• Post-transaction, PanJam, which will ultimately hold the combined businesses, will be renamed Pan Jamaica Group Limited (‘the Group’). JP will emerge as the largest shareholder of the Group, with its shares in the Group being its principal operating asset. Both the renamed Pan Jamaica Group and JP will remain listed on the Main Market of the Jamaica Stock Exchange. The transaction is expected to be completed within the first quarter of 2023.
• The combined balance sheet and experience of both companies will allow Pan Jamaica Group to have an excellent platform for growth in key industries including property and infrastructure, finance, food and logistics. This will in turn capture synergies, bolster profitability, realize economies of scale and improve shareholder value.

(Source: JSE)

• The return of direct flights from Italy is being hailed by local stakeholders as a major boost for air connectivity out of Europe and for the upcoming winter tourist season, which officially starts on December 15. “The addition of these direct flights speaks to the confidence our airline partners have of the destination,” Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, told JIS News.
• Government officials, attraction and hotel owners, transport operators, and other business interests, said that the latest development, which saw the inaugural arrival of Neos Airline out of Milan, Italy into Montego Bay on November 20, represents an important sign of recovery since 2019 and the subsequent onslaught of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The minister expects the return of direct flights to dramatically increase arrivals from Italy, pointing to the 13,000 visitors Jamaica received in 2019. During the upcoming winter season, the airline will connect Italy to Jamaica with two weekly flights.
• This development will further support the recovery of the tourism sector, and contribute to spillover effects to other sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing and transportation, which will in turn drive economic growth.

(Source: JIS News)

• Barbados secured a major “game-changer” contract with the Government of Rwanda to establish a new pharmaceutical industry, the first in the Caribbean.
• “Perhaps the biggest game changer since we have come to the office is about to unfold, and we have been working on it very quietly for the last six months or so, and that is addressing the issue of pharmaceutical equity and creating a platform for jobs, investment and earnings for a pharmaceutical industry in Barbados for the first time,” said Mottley.
• The Government of Rwanda, the European Union, the European Investment Bank, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Susan Buffett Foundation had already committed to assisting Barbados in establishing the industry.
• The Prime Minister noted that “This has been a major achievement for a small state like Barbados to be able to locate itself centre of the Americas as a location for the development of a pharmaceutical industry.”
• The current deal is expected to provide over 4,000 jobs for Barbadians within the next five years, with a focus on the development of cancer treatment pharmaceuticals, vaccinations, and drugs for women’s reproductive health care difficulties.

(Source: Caribbean News Now)