• Sygnus Credit Investments Limited (SCI) has advised that at a Board of Directors’ meeting held on November 14, 2019, approval was granted for the Company to increase the capital raise to up to J$4,500,000,000.00 (US$35,000,000.00). This follows SCI’s prior advisory of its Board approval for the Company to raise up to J$1,200,000,000.00 (or USD equivalent) in debt.
• SCI has further advised that the capital raise will be done in various tranches and may take the form of Bonds, Loans, Notes or Preference Shares.

(Source: JSE)

• Some of the new measures that were announced by Finance Minister Colm Imbert in the 2020 national budget went into effect on Sunday, the 1^st of December.
• In a full advertisement on Monday, the government reminded citizens of the measures that took effect from December 1 such as the new minimum wage of $17.50 per hour, up from the previous rate of $15.00.
• Employees of the unemployed relief program and the community-based environment protection and enhancement program (CEPEP) will get a 15% increase in their wages, while trainees of the on-the-job training program will see a 10% hike in their stipends with the intake for the program is increased from 5,000 to 8,000 trainees.

(Source: Trinidad Express Newspaper)

• The director of the Dominican Republic Export and Investment Center stated the country’s foreign direct investment (FDI) companies reinvest more than 47% of their profits.
• According to a press release, this data is supported by the study “impact of foreign direct investment in the Dominican economy” conducted by the firm Analytica. FDI in the last seven years is about US$20.1Bn, representing a milestone in the attraction of FDI.
• According to the Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC), the Dominican Republic is among the top 10 countries for the collection of FDI in Latin America and the Caribbean.
• The sectors that are benefiting from the inflows of FDI include hotels, pharmaceuticals, free zones, telephone industry, mining, power companies, services, retail, technology and financial services.

(Source: Dominican Today)

• President Donald Trump suggested that he would be happy to wait until after the 2020 election to do a trade deal with China, adding that Beijing wants one now. Stocks futures fell after his comments.
• In further signs of increasing tensions between the two nations, Chinese state media said the government would soon publish a list of “unreliable entities” which could lead to sanctions against U.S. companies.
• The next round of tariffs on Chinese goods is due to kick in on Dec. 15, and investors are starting to become concerned that the market consensus of a delay in implementation may be proven wrong. 

(Source: Bloomberg)

• France said the European Union would retaliate if the U.S. follows through on a threat to unleash tariffs on $2.4 billion of exports.
• The office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced the move yesterday in response to the imposition of a 3% “digital tax” by Emmanuel Macron’s administration. The levies are due to come into force in early 2020.
• Both Trump and Macron are in London today for the 70th anniversary of the NATO alliance, with the U.S. president already taking the opportunity to criticize the French tax. 

(Source: Bloomberg)

• Preliminary figures from the Jamaica Tourist Board indicate that Jamaica has already earned US$3.1Bn to date from tourist arrivals.
• The data also indicates that from January to October 2019, Jamaica welcomed 3.4Mn visitors to the island.
• Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett said it is very likely that Jamaica will achieve the US$3.7Bn in earnings projected for this year.
• Bartlett said this development puts the island on track to surpass the ministry's five-pillar growth strategy, which when proposed in 2016 was projected to result in visitor arrivals increasing to five million in five years and earning US$5Bn.

(Source: RJR News Online)

• Montserrat’s current account deficit will widen in 2019 and 2020, as a sharp spike in tourist expenditure in 2018 returns to historical levels and a number of infrastructure projects drive import demand.
• Fitch Solutions forecast the current account deficit to widen to 9.8% of GDP in 2019 and 12.3% in 2020, from 2.0% in 2018.
• Over the long term, Montserrat will continue to run wide current account deficits, raising risks to external account stability if financing from the UK, EU and multi-laterals falls off.

(Source: Fitch)

• Republic Financial Holdings Limited (RFHL) announced yesterday that it has reached an agreement to acquire an eighth  Scotia Bank operation in the Caribbean, which comes after its previous purchase of Scotia Bank’s operations in seven countries which includes Anguilla, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Maarten and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
• The Trinidadian entity stated that it is buying 100% of the shares of the British Virgin Island operations from Scotia Bank, for consideration it did not publicly disclose.
• Management has stated that the transaction supports its strategic decision to focus on operations across the region where it can achieve a greater scale and deliver the best value for customers.
• The company recorded a net profit of TT$1.58Bn for the year ended September 2019, which was an increase of $258Mn or 19.5% over the profit of TT$1.32Bn earned the 2018 financial year.

(Source: Trinidad Express)

• From rural bank runs to surging consumer indebtedness and an unprecedented bond restructuring, mounting signs of financial stress in China are putting the nation’s policymakers to the test.
• Xi Jinping’s government faces an increasingly difficult balancing act as it tries to support the world’s second-largest economy without encouraging moral hazard and reckless spending.
• While authorities have so far been reluctant to rescue troubled borrowers and ramp up stimulus, the costs of maintaining that stance are rising as defaults increase and China’s slowdown deepens. 
• For now, investors appear to be betting that policymakers can manage the country’s financial risks and keep the economy afloat.

(Source: Bloomberg)

• U.K consumer confidence will head into the election at the lowest level prior to a poll since 2010, which took place in the aftermath of the global financial crisis.
• The odds are now tilting further in the direction of the Conservatives following this week’s closely-watched YouGov poll pointing to a big majority for the Tories.
• Some more data emerged this week that may catch the eye, showing net migration to the U.K. from the European Union has fallen to the lowest level since 2003.
• But even if the odds are in Boris Johnson’s favor, traders are staying cautious and keeping hedges in place just in case there’s another big surprise.

(Source: Bloomberg)