• In the financial statements published for the year ended October 31, 2019, Cargo Handlers reported a modest (20.8%) dip in net profit to $130.90Mn (EPS: $0.35) down from $165.23Mn reported in the prior year.
• The company reported an increase in key expense items which accounted for a major part of the decline in net profit. In particular, direct expenses which were non-existent in the prior year increased to $8.20Mn; administrative expenses grew 42.1% (or $9.20Mn) to $31.06Mn; and other operating expenses increased 19.8% (or $32.77Mn) to $198.39Mn.
• The stock has declined 36.7% since the start of the year, and closed trading at $9.50 on Monday. The stock currently trades at a P/E of 27.1x earnings which is above the Junior Market average of 25.2x.

 (Source: CHL Financials)

• Oil prices were set for a third straight weekly gain despite a Friday fall after easing U.S.-China trade tensions lifted business confidence and the outlook for global economic growth.

• Brent LCOc1 was down 17 cents at $66.37 a barrel by 1311 GMT, equivalent to a weekly rise of around 1.8%, while U.S.

• West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 was down 20 cents at $60.98 per barrel, a gain of around 1.5% on the week.

• Volume of oil trade remained thin in the pre-Christmas wind down.

• Progress in the trade dispute between the world’s two biggest oil consumers has raised expectations of higher energy demand next year.

(Source: Reuters)

• World stocks touched record highs on Friday, as trading wound down before the year-end holidays, while the British pound was heading toward its worst week for more than two years amid renewed worries over how Britain will leave the European Union.

• MSCI’s world equity index. MIWD00000PUS, which tracks shares in 49 countries, gained a smidgeon to 561.31, bettering a record scaled on Thursday as optimism infused markets after the United States and China agreed an initial trade deal.

• On Wall Street, futures for the S&P 500 ESc1 were flat near all-time highs, having risen more than 1% in the week.

• On the currency front, sterling steadied after suffering a sharp reversal that left it facing its worst weekly fall since late 2017 of around 2%.

(Source: Reuters)

• The central bank lowered the overnight interest-rate target for the fourth consecutive time since August by 0.25 percentage point to 7.25%, bringing borrowing costs to their lowest level since 2017.

• This is in an effort to foster an environment of confidence and certainty for investment as well as increase productivity which will in turn spur economic growth.

• The lowered interest rate narrowed the spread between Mexican and U.S. rates, since the Federal Reserve kept rates steady at its meeting earlier this month. Most analysts bet the easing cycle in Mexico will continue in the coming months at a moderate pace.

• The consensus sees the interest rate at 6.5% by the end of next year, according to a recent survey among private economists.

(Source: Wall Street Journal)

• Trinidad & Tobago’s (T&T) current account surplus will narrow over the coming quarters as declining energy production and subdued prices decrease T&T’s goods trade surplus.

• Weak economic activity and a negative interest rate differential with the United States will drive continued capital outflows, which will keep T&T’s overall external position in deficit.

• Fitch Solutions revised its current account surplus for 2019 from 8.7% of GDP to 5.7% and for 2020 from 12.7% to 5.3% as revised data showed a significantly smaller surplus in 2018 than previously reported and energy production has fallen steeply.

(Source: Fitch)

• The Trade Board Limited (TBL) is looking to expand the scope of the Jamaica Trade Information Portal (JTIP) by adding trade in services to the goods category.

• Speaking at a recent Jamaica Information Service (JIS) Think Tank session at the Agency’s head office in Kingston, Trade Administrator and TBL Chief Executive Officer, Douglas Webster, said the proposed move is primarily consequent on the service industry accounting for some 72% of Jamaica’s gross domestic product (GDP).

• “As currently constructed and operated, JTIP treats only with trade in goods. We want it to transcend that and we have an edict from Cabinet to the effect that it must be done as quickly as possible. We will be making every effort to ensure that that begins soon,” he explained.

(Source: JIS)

• The U.S. current account deficit fell to more than a one-year low in the third quarter as imports declined sharply and the surplus on primary income swelled, government data showed on Thursday.
• The Commerce Department said the current account deficit, which measures the flow of goods, services and investments into and out of the country, decreased 0.9% to $124.1 billion last quarter, the lowest level since the second quarter of 2018.
• Data for the second quarter was revised to show the deficit declining to $125.2 billion, instead of the previously reported $128.2 billion.
• Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the current account deficit would tighten to $122.1 billion in the third quarter.

(Source: Reuters)

• The Bank of England kept interest rates steady on Thursday, saying it was too soon to gauge how much Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s election victory would lift the Brexit uncertainty that has hung over the economy.
• Two of the BoE’s nine policymakers voted for a second month in a row for a cut to borrowing costs due to fears that Britain’s jobs boom is deteriorating.
• But the majority took a wait-and-see approach at the penultimate rate-setting meeting for Governor Mark Carney, who is due to stand down on Jan. 31.
• “There was no evidence yet about the extent to which policy uncertainties among companies and households had declined following recent domestic policy developments,” the BoE said in a statement.
• Sterling rose and British government bond prices fell on the news that no further BoE policymakers had backed a rate cut.

(Source: Reuters)

• On December 18, 2019, the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed first reviews of Honduras’ performance under an economic program supported by a two-year Stand-By Arrangement (SBA) and a two-year arrangement under the Standby Credit Facility (SCF). 
• The completion of the reviews enables the authorities to access resources in the total amount of about US$144.7 million (SDR 105 million). The authorities have expressed their intention to continue to treat the arrangements as precautionary.
• The IMF noted that despite headwinds to growth and a challenging external environment, the Honduran authorities remain fully committed to the economic program supported by the IMF.
• They have also, among other things, maintained prudent macroeconomic policies—the fiscal position is in line with the Fiscal Responsibility Law, inflation is within the central bank’s target band, and the current account deficit has narrowed despite adverse terms of trade—and have taken initial steps on structural reforms to promote sustained, inclusive growth.

(Source: IMF)

• The Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) is projecting a $2.4Bn increase in total currency in circulation during December to $152.4Bn, relative to the sum in November, in keeping with heightened activities associated with the festive Christmas season. 
• In a statement on Tuesday December 17, the Bank said the projection represents a 14.1% increase, compared to 20.4% for the corresponding period in 2018. 
• The BOJ noted that the forecast is generally consistent with the five-year average growth of 17.6% for the month of December. 
• According to the BOJ, net currency issued between December 1 and 13 this year stood at $1.2 billion (0.9%), which was $1Bn lower than the corresponding period last year. 
• The Bank further pointed out that the stock of currency in the hands of the public as also the vaults of financial institutions, as at December 13, totalled $131.2Bn.

(Source: JIS)