NEWS
Sabga III: Vaccine offers hope for economic rebound
ANSA McAl CEO Anthony Sabga III said on Thursday that his conglomerate has "a very positive outlook" owing to mass vaccinations helping the country rebound from the economic fallout of the covid19 pandemic, addressing a mid-year virtual shareholders meeting. He said the conglomerate remains "deeply encouraged." "The outlook, pandemic aside, we are encouraged by the internal vaccination levels of our people. I believe the internal reported numbers are as high up as 70 per cent, "We remain proponents of vaccination for the population, supporters of that, that support us having a healthy society and we encourage economic recovery." Read more here
Pfizer jabs for students 12 years and up from ‘as early’ next week
Shortly after receiving a donation of over 300,000 Pfizer vaccines from the US yesterday morning, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh was optimistic local authorities may be able to start vaccinating students from as early as next week. Addressing reporters at the Piarco International Airport after taking charge of the 305,370 vaccines around 8 am, Deyalsingh said once the vaccines are prepared for use, they must be utilised within 30 days. This is the largest vaccine donation Trinidad and Tobago has received since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Deyalsingh said he was scheduled to meet with Ministry of Education officials yesterday to discuss how soon they can begin administering the vaccines to students. Read more here
POLITICS
Stop vaccine shopping, hopping
The arrival of more than 300,000 Pfizer covid19 vaccine doses from the US compels the Government to turn its attention to boosting the vaccine take-up rate. Additionally, the confirmed presence of the highly infectious delta variant means the time has come to bite the bullet in relation to mandatory vaccination or, at the very least measures that will impel people to get vaccinated if they want access to certain facilities and agencies. The common good must come before “personal choice.” Read more here
BUSINESS
Ansa Merchant Bank posts $160m profit
Ansa Merchant Bank's profit before tax rebounded to a healthy $160.8 million for the second quarter up to June 30, 2021 after a low of $46.2 million recorded in the six-month period of 2020. "This was primarily due to the recovery in our investment portfolios from non-cash mark to market gains," Ansa Merchant's chairman A Norman Sabga said in his statement on the unaudited interim results. Read more here
BIGWU raises concerns over banks’ Covid policy
As more vaccines become readily available in the country and more sectors begin to open back up, some financial institutions are already preparing guidelines to determine when and how employees would return to work. Some institutions require employees to update them on their vaccine status and even consider payment to vaccinated staff as an incentive that can take any form, including cash. The Banking, Insurance and General Workers Union (BIGWU) is not in agreement with the proposed guidelines set by Republic Bank as they prepare for the return of employees to the office by September 1, 2021. Read more here
REGIONAL
Prosperity FPSO on course for 2024 completion
Constuction of Guyana’s third Floating Production and Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel has progressed to another phase. On Thursday, ExxonMobil’s contractor, SBM Offshore, announced that the hull for the Prosperity FPSO had arrived safely at the Keppel yard in Singapore. “Now, the next phase of construction will commence, with the topside modules being integrated at the yard,” a statement from the company indicated. It noted too that despite various challenges posed by the ongoing global pandemic, the unit remains on schedule to be completed in 2024. “Drydock activities are scheduled to begin in the fourth quarter of this year, with the installation of major structures that will support the Mooring and Subsea Risers,” SBM Offshore said. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Afghanistan: Panic and disbelief as thousands flee Taliban onslaught
The UN has urged Afghanistan's neighbours to keep their borders open as the number of civilians fleeing the Taliban onslaught swells. Many of those internally displaced have been arriving in Kabul, seeing the capital as their last safe refuge. Food shortages are "dire", the World Food Programme (WFP) said. It warned of a humanitarian catastrophe. On Friday, the Taliban seized the country's second largest city Kandahar, the latest provincial capital to fall. The southern city of 600,000 people was once the Taliban's stronghold, and is strategically important as a trade hub. The insurgents also took the nearby city of Lashkar Gah and now control about a third of Afghanistan's provincial capitals. Read more here
13th August 2021