TTMA IN THE NEWS
Exim Bank
The Trinidad and Tobago Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA) says while members have experienced temporary delays in accessing foreign exchange through the Exim Bank since the start of October, the situation is expected to be resolved soon once the national budget is passed and allocations resumed. Speaking with Express Business, TTMA president Dale Parson confirmed that “there has been a short delay due to the Budget being mid-October - later than expected - but we are optimistic that should be resolved shortly with the passing of the budget debate in Parliament. We are confident that allocations will be resumed.” Read more here
NEWS
Machel credits young talent for success as he collects Road March prize
Soca icon Machel Montano is crediting his enduring success in the industry to constantly collaborating with young talent who keep his music vibrant and relevant. Montano made the comment yesterday, as he accepted a $250,000 prize for winning the 2025 TUCO/bmobile Road March Competition with his hit Pardy. During the presentation, which was held in bmobile’s corporate box at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain, he invited producer XplicitMevon, co-producer Kyle Phillips, Badjohn Republic, and writer Andre Jeffers to join him on stage. “Now, you see these four here, but if we really had to bring the whole team in here, the room wouldn’t be big enough,” Montano said. Even in celebration, his focus was already on the future. Read more here
POLITICS
PM looking for partners beyond Caricom
Fresh from declaring that Caricom was not a reliable partner – after claiming that the regional socio-political bloc of nations had decided to side with Venezuela over its fellow member – Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said there will be a "significant realignment" of this country's foreign policy in the coming years. In a WhatsApp message to Newsday at 6.35 pm on October 28, the prime minister said since she did not consider Caricom to be reliable, the change in TT's foreign policy had become necessary in order for this country to improve its economic and physical security. On October 27, in response to the Venezuelan government's decision to immediately suspend all energy agreements with TT over its decision to support the US presence in the Southern Caribbean and military action against narco terrorists and human traffickers, Persad-Bissessar said TT had no need for Venezuelan gas, as there are other projects in both the energy and non-energy sectors to secure its economic future. Read more here
Venezuela declares Kamla: Persona non grata
Venezuela’s National Assembly has declared Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar “persona non grata,” as it continues to accuse her Government of supporting United States military aggression against the Bolivarian Republic. However, Persad-Bissessar has again dismissed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro’s comments as meaningless. During a parliamentary session yesterday, lawmakers voted unanimously in favour of the motion under Article 111 of Venezuela’s constitution and also endorsed Maduro’s decision to suspend all energy agreements with Trinidad and Tobago. National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez described the move as “a matter of honour, dignity, morality, and respect,” and accused Persad-Bissessar of betraying regional solidarity. Holding up newspaper clippings featuring Trinidad and Tobago’s Prime Minister, Rodríguez said, “It is a matter of honour, dignity, morality, expression, sovereignty, and Venezuelan independence to declare this woman, who crawls like a worm, persona non grata to this Republic, which is the cradle of liberators, which is the cradle of free men and women.” Read more here
BUSINESS
Central bank: $3.3m in fraud reported
The Central Bank Governor Larry Howai convened a high-level meeting of bankers, officers of the TTPS Fraud Squad, the Financial Intelligence Bureau and the Financial Intelligence Unit, to raise an alarm over a growing trend of incidents of fraud, which has amounted to $3.3 million over the fiscal year October 2024 to September 2025. Howai said the main targets of these incidents of fraud are women. "What struck me was that if you're a woman and you're between the ages of 30 and 49 and you live somewhere in east or south Trinidad, you're probably about twice as likely to be defrauded," he said. Read more here
Business Chambers concerned over end of SME loan programme
Several business chambers across Trinidad and Tobago have voiced concern over the government’s decision to discontinue the small to medium enterprise long-term guarantee loan programme, warning that the move could limit access to financing, discourage entrepreneurship, and slow the pace of economic recovery. The programme, introduced to assist SMEs in accessing credit for expansion and recovery following the pandemic and supply chain disruptions, had provided a financial safety net for qualifying businesses. Read more here
REGIONAL
Authorities to pursue death penalty for suspect in deadly gas station explosion
AUTHORITIES have asserted that a case will be made for the death penalty against Venezuelan national Daniel Alexander Ramirez Peodom, who has been identified as the prime suspect in Sunday night’s deadly explosion at the Mobil Fuel Station on Regent and King Streets, Georgetown, which claimed the life of six-year-old Soraya Bourne and left four others injured. This was disclosed on Tuesday evening by Minister of Home Affairs, Oneidge Walrond, during a press conference. “A young, innocent child has been murdered. Had this man been able to put the device in that bin, more lives would have been lost, but one Guyanese life is still too much. I am sure that our Commander-in-Chief and my President will sign off on that order,” Walrond told reporters. Read more here
INTERNATIONAL
Jamaicans wake to devastation as hurricane causes floods, power cuts and splits city in two
The normal soundtrack that accompanies Jamaican life is silent this morning as many have woken to no electricity. About three-quarters of the island is without power and many parts of its western side are under water, with homes destroyed by strong winds after Hurricane Melissa tore across the island with catastrophic force. As wind and rain lashed through the night, one local official said the destruction resembled "the scene of an apocalypse movie." With communications crippled, the true scale of the disaster remains unknown. Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared the island a "disaster area" late Tuesday, warning of "devastating impacts" and "significant damage" to hospitals, homes and businesses. Read more here
29th October 2025