• Energy prices are expected to inch up in 2022 after surging more than 80% in 2021, fueling significant near-term risks to global inflation in many developing countries, the World Bank said in its latest Commodity Markets Outlook on Thursday. 
• The multilateral development bank said energy prices should start to decline in the second half of 2022 as supply constraints ease, with non-energy prices such as agriculture and metals also expected to ease after strong gains in 2021. 
• "The surge in energy prices poses significant near-term risks to global inflation and, if sustained, could also weigh on growth in energy-importing countries," said Ayhan Kose, chief economist and director of the World Bank's Prospects Group, which produces the Outlook report. 
• The World Bank noted that some commodity prices rose to or exceeded levels in 2021 not seen since a spike a decade earlier. Natural gas and coal prices, for instance, reached record highs amid supply constraints and rebounding electricity demand, although they are expected to decline in 2022 as demand eases and supply improves, the bank said.

(Source: Reuters)

• Energy prices are expected to inch up in 2022 after surging more than 80% in 2021, fueling significant near-term risks to global inflation in many developing countries, the World Bank said in its latest Commodity Markets Outlook on Thursday. 
• The multilateral development bank said energy prices should start to decline in the second half of 2022 as supply constraints ease, with non-energy prices such as agriculture and metals also expected to ease after strong gains in 2021. 
• "The surge in energy prices poses significant near-term risks to global inflation and, if sustained, could also weigh on growth in energy-importing countries," said Ayhan Kose, chief economist and director of the World Bank's Prospects Group, which produces the Outlook report. 
• The World Bank noted that some commodity prices rose to or exceeded levels in 2021 not seen since a spike a decade earlier. Natural gas and coal prices, for instance, reached record highs amid supply constraints and rebounding electricity demand, although they are expected to decline in 2022 as demand eases and supply improves, the bank said.

(Source: Reuters)

• The All-Jamaica Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 114.9, reflecting a 2.3% rise in consumer prices for September 2021. With the September outturn, the 12-mth point-to-point inflation rate was 8.2%, a significant increase from the 6.1% reported in August 2021 and puts inflation firmly above the BOJ’s 4-6% target range. 
• A 3.0% increase in the heavily weighted index for the “Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages” division was a major contributor due in part to a 9.9% increase in the index for the class ‘Vegetables, tubers, plantains, cooking bananas and pulses. 
• Increases in the index for the divisions ‘Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels’ (0.8%), ‘Transport’ (8.1%) and ‘Education’ (2.4%) also contributed to the overall inflation rate. 
• A 15.0% increase in bus, route taxi and hackney carriage fares granted by the Government also contributed to the rise in the index for the ‘Transport’ division. This movement was however tempered by lower petrol prices. Additionally, the index for the ‘Housing, Water, Electricity Gas and Other Fuels’ division moved upwards as a result of higher prices for electricity, water and sewage rates. 
• According to the Bank of Jamaica, inflation is projected to average between 5.5% and 6.5% over the next two years, above the previous projection of 4.8%. The inflation projection is driven primarily by a gradual rise in core inflation, supported by the lagged impact of higher international grains and shipping prices, a recovery in domestic demand and a temporary jump in inflation expectations.

(Source: STATIN and BOJ)

• The Port Authority of Jamaica (PAJ) has expressed confidence in increased cruise shipping activities across all cruise ports islandwide, on the heels of receiving four World Travel Awards. Jamaica is the recipient of the Caribbean’s Leading Cruise Destination 2021; Caribbean’s Leading Cruise Port 2021: Historic Port of Falmouth; Caribbean’s Leading Home Port 2021: Port of Montego Bay, and Caribbean’s Leading Tourism Development Project 2021: Historic Naval Dockyard, Port Royal. 
• President and Chief Executive Officer of the PAJ, Professor the Hon. Gordon Shirley, OJ, reminded cruise enthusiasts that there is great value to be obtained from an award-winning cruise destination like Jamaica. 
• He also expressed optimism in the expected return on investment in the upcoming season. With the investments the organization has made in cruise infrastructure this year, optimism is high that the calls for next year’s season will surpass those slated for this year. 
• Vice President, Cruise Shipping & Marina Operations at the PAJ, William Tatham, indicated that he is pleased with the progress of the PAJ’s cruise restart activities. Mr. Tatham also noted that many of the regular ships will return to Jamaica this season, including vessels from Disney Cruise Lines. 
• He pointed out that the Disney Fantasy is scheduled to call at the historic Falmouth Port in December. Mr. Tatham attributed numerous calls from the Disney Cruise Lines to a successful meeting with the company’s executives at the recently concluded Seatrade Cruise Global Conference, held in Miami in the United States. Cruise shipping is one of the PAJ’s core business segments that contribute significantly to the Jamaican economy.

(Source: JIS News)

• Exuma’s Chamber of Commerce yesterday said it is aiming to engage the Government over the “devastating” impact the island has suffered from losing “two-thirds” of its bank branches. 
• Pedro Rolle, the Chamber’s president, told Tribune Business it was impossible for Exuma to present itself to Bahamian and international investors as a modern, open economy unless there was sufficient access to “basic, functional commercial banking”. 
• With both Scotiabank and Bank of The Bahamas exiting Exuma within two years, he added that the island is now down to just one remaining commercial bank branch - Royal Bank of Canada (RBC). 
• Speaking after John Rolle, the Central Bank’s governor, revealed last week that bank branches in Grand Bahama and the Family Islands have shrunk by almost 40% in the seven years to 2021, the Exuma Chamber chief voiced doubts over whether electronic payments providers or the Sand Dollar digital currency will be able to adequately fill the void.

(Source: The Tribune)

• Fitch Solutions forecast Puerto Rico’s current account surplus will widen in Fiscal Year 2022 (FY2022; July 2021-June 2022) due to a rebound in exports and federal aid inflows. 
• Fitch forecast the surplus will reach 17.8% of GNP in FY2022, up from an estimated 11.5% in FY2021 and notably wider than its regional peers. 
• The agency expects surpluses will persist over the long term, due to billions of dollars of federal aid that the US territory is slated to receive in the coming decade.

(Source: Fitch Solutions)

• Europe should not see an inflation spiral as a spike in energy prices is expected to fade next year and there is slack in the continent's labour market, the IMF European department chief said on Wednesday. 
• "We don't at this stage, expect any inflation spiral in Europe," IMF European Department Director Alfred Kammer told a news briefing. "The high inflation which we are seeing right now is really driven by an increase in energy prices, and we expect that to fade out during 2022." 
• Kammer said that a supply-demand mismatch on energy was partly due to the restart of economic activity and other factors such as the weather. 
• He said consumer price increases in the euro zone seen so far were not translating into second-round wage increases, partly because of slack in the labour market, with hours worked still 3% below pre-pandemic levels.

(Source: Reuters)

• Britain said on Wednesday it had secured deals for two COVID-19 antivirals, one developed by Merck and the other by Pfizer, which it said could be used to treat patients by the end of the year if regulatory approval is granted. 
• Prime Minister Boris Johnson has removed almost all COVID-19 restrictions and is relying on COVID-19 vaccines and treatments to try and withstand winter pressures on hospitals given high case numbers of more than 40,000 new infections a day. 
• "We may soon have a new defence in our arsenal with two new antiviral drugs that we have secured," health minister Sajid Javid said in a statement. 
• Britain said it had secured 480,000 courses of Merck's molnupiravir, an antiviral pill which can be used in non-hospitalised patients

(Source: Reuters)

• KPREIT, on October 11, 2021, completed the acquisition of an approximately 1.5-acre property in the Cross Roads area that will be developed to house small bay warehouse units. This continues KPREIT’s thrust to increase its holdings of industrial properties in the jurisdictions in which it operates. The property was acquired for a consideration of J$75Mn. 
• The purchase follows the company’s recent agreement with a developer in the Cayman Islands to acquire three mixed-use units and last year’s acquisition of an approximately 88,000 sq. ft. warehouse property in the industrial belt of Kingston, Jamaica. 
• For the six months ended June 30, 2021, KPREIT reported a 59% year on year increase in rental revenue to US$1.4Mn, while net profit amounted to US$927,202 in 2021 versus a loss of US$343,397 in the prior year. 
• If the expected benefits from these investments materialize, KPREIT’s revenue generation, bottom-line, and valuation will likely increase. The local industrial real estate sector, at large, is also expected to benefit from increased and possibly higher prices and rental yields, as companies invest in warehouses and logistics centres, to facilitate consumer demand and take advantage of opportunities

(Source: JSE News & NCBCM Research Team)

• In light of the economic pains unleashed by the COVID-19 pandemic, commercial banks on the advice of the country’s regulator, the Bank of Guyana, have provided more than $22Bn in COVID-19 relief to cushion the blow to the economy. 
• According to the Bank of Guyana’s 2021 Half Year Report, Citizens Bank Guyana Inc. granted $12Bn in relief to sections of the economy, while Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry (GBTI) granted $6Bn and Bank of Nova Scotia granted $4.2Bn. Collectively, they account for $22.2Bn of total relief measures granted at the end of June 2021 by the banking sector. 
• Expounding further, Central Bank said the services sub-sector continues to receive the largest portion of relief, with 60.2% (G$16.5Bn) of total relief granted at the end of June 2021. The real estate mortgages sector received 19.9% (G$5.5Bn) of total relief followed by the manufacturing subsector with 11.6% (G$3.2Bn). 
• As for relief granted to the households sector, this represented 3.1% (G$846Mn) of total relief granted and 2.5% of total loans to the households sector.
• The Bank of Guyana was keen to note that it will continue to monitor the developments in light of COVID-19 relief and take all necessary steps to protect the safety, soundness and stability of the banking system.

(Source: Kaieteur News)