• The Bank of Jamaica yesterday intervened in the foreign exchange market selling US$20Mn to authorized dealers and large cambios through its B-FXITT flash sale tool.
• The central bank noted that this move was warranted to address temporary demand and supply imbalances in the foreign exchange market.
• Last week the BOJ also intervened with a US$30Mn injection into the FX market under similar circumstances.

(Source: Bank of Jamaica)

• Fitch Ratings has assigned a 'BBB' rating to Panama's USD1.25 billion bonds maturing 2030 and to the USD750 million bonds maturing 2060.
• The bonds maturing 2030 carry a coupon of 3.16%. The bonds maturing 2060 carry a coupon of 3.87%.  Proceeds from the issuance will be used for general budgetary purposes.
• The bond ratings are in line with Panama's Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'BBB'. 
• The bonds are sensitive to any change in Panama's Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR. Fitch affirmed Panama's Long-Term Foreign-Currency IDR at 'BBB'/Stable Outlook on Feb. 13, 2019.

(Source: Fitch)

• Bermuda is expected to recover from a minor recession in 2018, powered by solid growth in the insurance and tourism industries.
• The forecast is that Bermuda will experience real GDP growth of 1.1% y-o-y in 2019 and 1.0% in 2020, after economic activity contracted by less than 0.1% in 2018.
• Risks to the forecast are weighted to the downside, as an uptick in natural disasters could damage profitability in the insurance industry and a slowing global economy could weigh on tourism.

(Source: Fitch)

• There was some confusion yesterday when markets interpreted a speech by Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams in which he said central banks should move quickly when they see signs of trouble as referring to upcoming policy actions.
• A New York Fed spokeswoman later clarified that Williams’s prepared remarks were “an academic speech on 20 years of research” rather than a short-term signal.
• Whatever Williams meant to say, there is no getting away from market expectations of a cut at the next meeting -- it’s just the magnitude that’s still under debate.
• Meanwhile, the European Central Bank is expected to signal further easing at its meeting next week.

(Source: Bloomberg)     

• Boris Johnson has not even entered Number 10 Downing Street as Britain’s prime minister and already he is facing a battle to keep the government he hopes to lead alive.
• If, as expected, Johnson is named Conservative leader on Tuesday and becomes prime minister on Wednesday, he will inherit a country in crisis and a governing party so divided that some members fear it could break apart.
• While Johnson’s allies prepare for a fight, one minister threatened to try to topple the next administration rather than allow the new premier to take Britain out of the EU without a deal.
• Hammond said he would be “very cautious” about backing a motion of no confidence in his own party’s administration -- but did not rule it out. If such a motion were passed, it would put Britain on course for a general election.

(Source: Bloomberg

• The Unemployment Rate for April 2019 was 7.8% which represents a 2.0% fall from the 9.8% recorded for April 2018. Male unemployment rate declined by 1.8% to 5.5% and the female unemployment rate declined by 2.1% to 10.6%.
• The employed labour force increased by 29,900 (2.5%) persons to 1,244,500 for April 2019 relative to 1,214,600 in April 2018.  The number of unemployed persons was 105,400, a decrease of 25,900 persons (or 19.7%) when compared to April 2018.
• There was also a fall in the unemployment rate for youth 14-24 years, which was 19.5% for April 2019, a decrease of 6.4% from 25.9% in April 2018.
• As a result, persons classified as ‘Outside the Labour Force’ dipped to 736,900, 4800 (or 0.7%) less than in April 2018. This decrease was due entirely to the male population; males outside the labor force in declined by 5,500 persons.

 (Source: STATIN)

• GWEST Corporation has sought to assure investors that the company will continue as a going concern after the auditor’s report expressed concern surrounding same.
• In the audited financial released earlier this year, the company reported increased revenues however expenses also increased drastically as well.
• The main hindrance to growth has been the facility’s inability to accept insurance cards because of a lack of accreditation of the lab by the Ministry of Health.   
• The company has however highlighted that it has since undertaken the following measures to revamp business: Restructuring of operations as a cost-cutting measure;  Sale of office space upon closure ; Debt restructuring and additional financing to continue expansion plans

 (Source: GWEST Corporation)

• It is expected that Antigua and Barbuda’s economic growth will moderate in 2019, as a hurricane recovery-driven construction boom slowly fades.
• That said, growth is expected to remain relatively strong, as activity in the tourism and construction sectors remain robust.
• Fitch forecast real GDP growth of 4.4% in 2019 and 3.3% in 2020.  Over the medium term, a slowing global economy and pressure on the government to rein in spending will provide headwinds to growth.

(Source: Fitch)

• Moody's Investors Services believes the Government has so far shown effective policymaking by restructuring Petrotrin. The international credit rating agency posited that had the Government not done so, it could have devolved into a potentially hazardous political and fiscal situation.
• The Trinidadian government is now accepting bids for the Petrotrin Pointe-a-Pierre refinery, and the rating agency believes that if the new owner improves the refinery's operations, this would have a positive short-term impact on economic growth and potentially positive effect over the longer term.
• Moody's also expects that over the next two years, the non-energy sector will return to growth and that gas output will stabilize along with an increase in oil production.
• Nevertheless, although it expected that the economy will return to growth, the country's prospects for economic diversification away from hydrocarbons remain limited because of ‘deep-seated institutional shortcomings and short-term policy decisions’.

(Source: Trinidad Express Newspaper)

• Group of Seven finance chiefs acknowledged gathering threats to the global economy and gave a cautious pledge to provide fiscal support if those dangers materialize.
• After a two-day meeting in Chantilly, France, finance ministers and central bankers declared risks for the global economy remain “tilted to the downside,” even if growth is stabilizing and there should be a moderate pickup next year. That’s a later timeline for improvement than envisioned at the Group of 20 summit in Osaka last month.
• Fiscal policy should be flexible and growth-friendly while rebuilding buffers where needed,” according to a summary of the talks prepared by the French G-7 presidency. “Monetary policy will continue to support economic activity while remaining mindful of financial stability and recognizing that monetary policy alone cannot address all economic challenges.”

(Source: Bloomberg)