Caribbean Cement Company Limited (CCC) has advised that Mr. Brian Young - CCC`s Chairman, Dr. Judith Robinson - Chairman - Board Audit Committee and Mr. Bevon Francis - Member - Board Audit Committee have resigned from the Board of Directors of CCC effective August 19, 2014. CCC has advised that Dr. Robinson`s and Mr. Francis` resignations were not due to any disagreement in respect of accounting principles or practices of, financial statement disclosure or any material issue impacting on the Audit Committee or the members` ability to properly carry out the functions delegated by the board.

The Board of Directors of Trinidad Cement Limited advised that on Tuesday, August 19, 2014, a Special (Compulsory) Meeting of Shareholders (SCM) of the Company was held, at which over 80% of shareholders were represented. Prior to the SCM, Mr. Andy Bhajan, Dr. Rollin Bertrand, Mr. Brian Young, Dr. Leonard Nurse, Mr. Carlos Hee Houng and Mr. Bevon Francis, submitted their resignations as Directors of TCL effective August 19, 2014 in accordance with Clause 4.6.3 (c) of Bye-Law No. 1 of the Company. At the SCM, Mr. Wilfred Espinet, Ms. Alison Lewis, Mr. Christopher Dehring, Mr. Michael Glenn Hamel-Smith, Mr. Francisco Aguilera, Mr. Carlos Alberto Palero and Mr. Nigel Edwards were unanimously elected directors of the Company in accordance with Section 75 of the Companies Act (Ch. 81:01) and Clause 4.6.4 of Bye-Law No. 1 of the Company, until the conclusion of the next Annual Meeting of the Company, at which time they will be eligible for re-election by the shareholders. The newly elected directors have joined Mr. Alejandro Ramirez, Mr. Jean Michel Allard and Mr. Wayne Yip Choy to form the Board of Directors of TCL. Mr. Wilfred Espinet and Mr. Francisco Aguilera were appointed by the board as Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively. The board took the decision to suspend with immediate effect, Dr. Rollin Bertrand as Group Chief Executive Officer and from all Committee and Executive positions within the Group.

The board also appointed Mr. Alejandro Ramirez as Acting Group Chief Executive Officer.

NCB Global Finance Limited (formerly AIC Finance Ltd.) Appoints New CEO

Patrick Hylton, NCB Group Managing Director and Chairman NCB Global Finance Limited, announces the appointment of a new CEO for NCB Global Finance Limited, Trinidad and Tobago, a subsidiary of NCB Capital Markets Limited. He is Angus P. Young who will assume office on September 1, 2014.

Angus will lead the development and execution of NCB Global Finance Ltd.’s long term strategy with a view to creating value for stakeholders and to build the NCB brand and reach in Trinidad and Tobago and the southern Caribbean.

Angus joins the NCB family with a wealth of experience in the regional financial services market that spans thirteen years. He is currently Managing Director of BDO Financial Advisory Services Ltd., which represents BDO’s corporate finance and transaction advisory interest in Trinidad & Tobago.

Before joining BDO, Angus was Vice President of Business Development at First Global (Trinidad and Tobago) Ltd. where he was charged with the responsibility of Corporate Finance and Capital Market origination in T&T and Jamaica.  Prior to FGTT, Angus spent four years at RBTT Merchant Bank Ltd. in leadership roles including Assistant Vice President and Regional Manager of Capital Market Origination where he covered the OECS territories and Guyana.

In the past, Angus has served as a Director of the Securities Dealers Association of Trinidad and Tobago.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Administrative and Commercial Studies (Financial and Economic Studies) from the University of Western Ontario and a Post Graduate Diploma in Accounting from Wilfrid Laurier University, School of Business and Economics, Ontario. 

NCB welcomes Angus and looks forward to a productive relationship as we pursue our aspirations for the region.

We also say goodbye to Devika Lennon who demitted office as General Manager on August 8, 2014. Devika served in the capacity since 2012 and commendably led the clean-up of the company’s loans portfolio and integration initiatives. NCB thanks Devika for her service and wishes her all the best in future endeavours.

In the meantime, Neisha Murrell-Richardson will act as General Manager. Neisha is the current Senior Manager for Sales and Marketing and acted as GM prior to Devika’s appointment.

World Finance names NCBCM Best Investment Management Company Caribbean 2014

The internationally acclaimed World Finance magazine has named NCBCM Best Investment Management Company for the second year running.

Published every two months by World News Media and based in the United Kingdom, the magazine explores matters relating to finance and the economy within an international context. Each year, it awards best-in-class large companies in the Americas, Asia and Australia; Europe; the Middle East and Africa.

This award speaks to our commitment to creating value for our stakeholders and aligns well with our regional expansion strategy.

Proven Investment Ltd - Declared Dividend

Proven advised that at a meeting held on August 11, 2014 a US$0.0032 per share was declared to all ordinary shareholders on record August 27, 2014 with a payment date of September 10, 2014. X date August 25, 2014. Also a dividend payment of J$0.10 was declared for Preference Shareholders with a record date of September 9, 2014 and payment date of September 23, 2014. X date September 5, 2014.

Jamaica Teas Limited

JAMT experienced strong growth in revenues in the third quarter driven by a 47% increase in domestic sales from its manufacturing operations. The improvement in sales resulted from a combination of increased market share and launch of new product.

Q3 Rescues Honey Bun’s Financial Performance

While earnings for the nine month period were virtually flat, Honey Bun delivered a strong outturn in the third quarter (Q3).  In Q3, sales increased by 14% while profits increased for that period by 406% over the prior year period to $11.8Mn. This was mainly as a result of significant improvement in the management of inventory and greater efficiencies in production.

Earnings Decline Sharply-Consolidated Bakeries (Purity)

For the six month period ended June, Consolidated Bakeries experienced a 39.8% decline in earnings to $14.6Mn (EPS:$0.07). The falloff in net profit reflected higher operating expenses which were up by   15.2%, on account of costs relating to engineering, branding and reorganization. On the revenue side, the company registered an increase in sales of 17.9% over the corresponding six month period in 2013, representing growth in all product categories.

The Planning Institute of Jamaica has indicated that in the April - June 2014 quarter, real GDP grew by an estimated 1.2% relative to the corresponding period of 2013. The Goods Producing Industry increased by 3.6% and the Services Industry recorded growth of 0.5%. Within the Goods-Producing Industry, increases in Agriculture, Forestry & Fishing (up 12.5%) and Construction (up 1.0%) outweighed declines of 0.6% and 0.3% recorded by Mining & Quarrying and Manufacture, respectively. All subcategories of the Services Industry recorded growth except for Producers of Government Services (down 0.2%) and Electricity & Water Supply (down 1.6%). The industries registering the largest increases were Hotels & Restaurants (up 2.7%); Transport, Storage & Communication (up 1.3%); and Other Services (up 1.0%).

For January – June 2014, real GDP was estimated to increase by 1.4%

The Board of Directors of Pan-Jamaican Investment Trust Limited will consider the payment of a third interim dividend for the year 2014 at a meeting to be held on August 12, 2014.