• Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Aubyn Hill, has reaffirmed that Jamaica remains a top destination for doing business, citing expanded government support for investors, entrepreneurs, and Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs).
• Since July 2025, at least 2,000 MSMEs and 2,100 individual entrepreneurs have been engaged through the Ministry’s roadshows held across eight parishes, which connect entrepreneurs with various portfolio agencies.
• Minister Hill also emphasised the importance of MSMEs participating in exports. “We have to export… and one of the things that we’re doing with MSMEs as we go out [is], the moment they get established at the Company’s Office [of Jamaica] we say [to them], ‘when are you going to start exporting? Where’s your market?’”
• Minister Hill also emphasised Jamaica’s macroeconomic appeal. “You go and look around CARICOM, go and look across the wider Central America and see how many countries you can find that don’t have some kind of currency control. Not Jamaica. That’s why investors want to come to Jamaica.”
• He also cited key economic indicators, including an unemployment rate of 3.3%, inflation holding steady at 3.3%, a debt-to-GDP ratio of 68.7% (down from 147%), and GDP growth of 1.4% in Q2 2025.

(Source: JIS)

• Speaking at the Bank of Jamaica’s (BOJ’s) quarterly press conference, Governor Richard Byles said the full rollout of Jamaica’s central bank digital currency (CBDC), branded JAM-DEX, will alleviate many of the problems people experience at automated teller machines (ATMs). He explained that JAM-DEX offers a safe, efficient, and convenient way to pay for goods and services without the need for cash.
• JAM-DEX was first introduced in 2021 and rolled out to the Jamaican public on a phased basis in 2022. However, it is still not widely utilised as a form of payment across the country.
• Governor Byles noted that retrofitting point-of-sale (POS) machines at consumer-facing establishments to accept the CBDC will facilitate a broader rollout. “The breakthrough with JAM-DEX will happen when we get the POS machines converted… that’s when we will see a much more rapid spread of use. If… you have a wallet full of JAM-DEX, unless you can spend it at places that use a POS machine, you have to resort to cash or you have to use your credit and debit card,” he said.
• He added, “So it’s critical, and the commercial banks know the POS conversion is what is holding up the effective and massive rollout of JAM-DEX. A lot of the problems that people are experiencing at ATMs to get cash can be addressed over the years when we get JAM-DEX rolled out.”
• Meanwhile, BOJ Deputy Governor, Financial Markets and Payments Systems, Natalie Haynes, reported a 30% increase in the volume of JAM-DEX type peer-to-peer (P2P) transactions since the start of 2025.
• Haynes further noted that retrofitting point-of-sale (POS) machines, together with onboarding additional digital wallet providers, is essential to advancing the rollout of JAM-DEX. “We are still working on getting the point-of-sale machines for the larger merchants retrofitted… we are doing that in collaboration with the banks … Also, we are] waiting on other wallet providers to be onboarded. Two are onboarded and are distributing JAM-DEX, and we expect two more before year end,” she informed.

(Source: JIS)

• Brazil's central bank chief Gabriel Galipolo emphasised on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, the need to keep interest rates at a restrictive level, citing a slow convergence of inflation expectations toward the official target. Policymakers have consistently signalled that the benchmark Selic rate, currently at 15%, should remain unchanged for an extended period.
• Expectations and projections from both the central bank and the market are still converging slowly toward the inflation target, requiring a more restrictive monetary policy, Galipolo noted. His remarks came after a weekly central bank survey of economists showed a first decline in inflation expectations for 2027, which had been stuck for six months.
• Inflation expectations for this year and next had already been falling in recent weeks, helped by a stronger local currency amid a global weakening of the U.S. dollar. Notwithstanding, market forecasts remain well above the official 3% target, standing at 4.86% for this year, 4.33% for next year and 3.97% in 2027.
• The central bank last month held its benchmark Selic rate steady after a 450bps tightening cycle kicked off in September. Notably, even with interest rates at 15%, Brazil's labour market continues to show strong resilience, which in some cases is driving stronger demand.

(Source: Reuters)

• The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority (ABTA) is celebrating a robust period of growth in the destination’s tourism sector, with promising prospects for the coming months. Colin C James, CEO of ABTA, provided an update on the country’s performance and plans, highlighting the impressive upward trend in visitor arrivals.
• Tourism, the country’s primary source of revenue, remains vital to its economic survival. Arrivals for the first half of 2025 rose 4% compared to the previous year, with June 2025 alone seeing over 25,500 visitors, primarily from the United States, Latin America, and regional markets. Notably, Latin American arrivals surged by nearly 195%, signalling a positive trajectory for the destination.
• A key focus has been on expanding air connectivity. The airline sector has reported a significant increase in capacity, with full flights into Antigua during peak periods and new airline partnerships coming online. It is expected that the return of the Condor Airline from Germany, as well as increased capacity from existing partners, will bolster winter tourism numbers.
• The Tourism Authority has also intensified efforts to attract regional visitors, particularly from Trinidad, Barbados, and Canada. Plans are also underway to grow Antigua’s cruise industry, with an emphasis on homeporting initiatives to establish Antigua as a premier port of call and homeport destination.
• Looking ahead to the end of the year, James expressed optimism that the upcoming tourism peaks and key industry events will provide critical opportunities to build industry relationships, showcase Antigua’s offerings, and secure future bookings.

(Source: CariCRIS)

• The U.S. economy grew faster than initially thought in the second quarter, in part driven by business investment in intellectual property such as artificial intelligence (AI), but tariffs on imports continued to cloud the picture.
• The upgrade to the gross domestic product (GDP) reported by the Commerce Department on Thursday also reflected upward revisions to consumer spending as well as business investment in equipment. That resulted in a measure of underlying domestic demand also being revised higher.
• GDP increased at a 3.3% annualised rate last quarter, the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) said in its second estimate. The economy was initially reported to have grown at a 3.0% pace in the second quarter. Economists polled by Reuters had expected GDP growth would be raised to a 3.1% rate.
• The GDP revision reflected upgrades to business spending on intellectual property products, now estimated to have expanded at a 12.8% rate, double the initially estimated 6.4% pace and the fastest in four years. Growth in business investment in equipment was revised up to a 7.4% pace from the 4.8% rate estimated last month. Growth in consumer spending, the economy's main engine, was raised to a 1.6% rate from the previously reported 1.4% pace.
• Economists expect a lacklustre second half, which would limit economic growth to about 1.5% for the full year. That reading would be down from 2.8% in 2024.

(Source: Reuters)

• The number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits fell last week, but tepid hiring could raise the unemployment rate to 4.3% in August.
• Initial claims for state unemployment benefits decreased 5,000 to a seasonally adjusted 229,000 for the week ended August 23, the Labour Department said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 230,000 claims for the latest week.
• In addition, the number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid, a proxy for hiring, also fell 7,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.954 million during the week ending August 16, the claims report showed. The so-called continuing claims data covered the week during which the government surveyed households for August's unemployment rate.
• A shrinking labour market pool because of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown is softening the impact of lacklustre hiring on the unemployment rate.
• Economists said reduced labour supply suggests the economy needs to create less than 90,000 jobs per month to keep up with growth in the working population. Many expect the unemployment rate to edge up to 4.3% in August from 4.2% in July.
• Higher continuing claims mirrored consumers' deteriorating perceptions of the labour market. A survey from the Conference Board on Tuesday showed the share of consumers viewing jobs as "hard to get" jumped to a 4-1/2-year high in August.

(Source: Reuters)

• Speaking at the commissioning of a 130,000-gallon sectional water tank in Manchester, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Mining, Hon. Floyd Green, reported that Jamaica’s agriculture sector recorded 13.7% growth in production during the second quarter of 2025. This growth reflects the sector’s resilience in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, which severely impacted the southern region of the island.
• “Normally, after an event like Hurricane Beryl, you would expect us to take two years or so for us to return to our [normal] production levels. But… we are already seeing great growth in our agricultural sector,” Minister Green stated.
• Highlighting improved water access across the agricultural sector, the Ministry provided pond liners to more than 32 farmers in Manchester last year. This intervention enabled the storage of over 450,000 gallons of water, bolstering crop production during drought conditions and enhancing long-term climate resilience.
• Minister Green further disclosed that farmers in southern Manchester and St. Elizabeth are poised to receive additional support as the Ministry enters the final phase of the Essex Valley Agricultural Development Project. “We are now on the final tranche of our Essex Valley system. We’ve already dug five new wells that are going to be commissioned in early 2026. In fact, right now, we are waiting on the pumps to come in,” he informed.
• As part of the project, 30 kilometres of roadwork have been completed, directly benefitting residents and farmers in South St. Elizabeth and South Manchester. In addition, a modern cold storage and agro-processing facility is under development in Downs, New Forest, Manchester, which is expected to serve farmers in South Manchester and St. Elizabeth.

(Source: JIS)

• Sagicor Select Funds Limited has announced that stockholders of both its Class B (Financial Select Fund) and Class C (Manufacturing & Distribution Select Fund) units have approved their respective Schemes of Arrangement at Court-Ordered Meetings held on August 19, 2025.
• The meetings, supervised by PricewaterhouseCoopers as scrutineers, recorded strong participation across in-person, proxy, and electronic voting.
• For Class B units, a total of 2.179 billion shares were represented, with more than 99.9% (2.177 billion) of votes cast in favour of the resolution. Similarly, for Class C units, 3.1823 billion shares were represented, with over 99.9% (3.1821 billion) approving the scheme and only a minimal number of votes against.
• Both outcomes comfortably surpassed the required 75% approval threshold, thereby confirming the passage of the resolutions and clearing the way for the implementation of the Schemes of Arrangement.
• Sagicor Select Funds introduced the Scheme of Arrangement to tackle a longstanding issue in its listed equity funds, SELECTF and SELECTMD, consistently traded at steep discounts to their Net Asset Values (NAVs) due to illiquid secondary market dynamics. To restore investor value and offer fairer redemption possibilities, SSFL proposed converting both into registered unit trust structures where a trustee redeems units at NAV.
• After board approval in mid-2024, the company pursued the required legal and regulatory steps, including filing with the Supreme Court and FSC.
• Upon successful shareholder votes, court sanction, and FSC registration, the funds will transform into Sigma-named unit trusts managed by Sagicor Investments and overseen by JCSD Trustee Services. This strategic shift is intended to bridge the price-NAV gap.
• On August 27^th, SELECTF and SELECTMD stock prices closed at $0.43 and $0.84, respectively. These represent significant discounts to NAVs of $0.552 and $1.243, respectively.

(Source: JSE and NCB Research)

• Brazil Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, that the South American country might challenge in U.S. courts the steep tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on U.S. imports of Brazilian goods. He also noted that Brazil would not engage in lobbying efforts.
• S. President Donald Trump slapped 50% tariffs on several Brazilian goods this month, citing what he called a "witch hunt" against former President Jair Bolsonaro - who is on trial on charges of plotting a coup - and trade practices he said were unfair.
• Brazil has expressed indignation at the tariffs, noting that it has run persistent trade deficits with the United States. Further, due to uncertainty about what the future may hold, Haddad believes that world leaders may feel insecure about the U.S.
• Finance Minister Haddad also noted that the U.S. dollar remains a reserve currency and will continue to be for many years; however, he cautioned that weaponising the dollar would undermine its role, adding that countries cannot be prevented from conducting bilateral trade in local currencies if that lowers transaction costs for them.

(Source: Reuters)

• The Ministry of Finance reported a $29.4Mn surplus for May 2025, marking a $10.7Mn year-over-year improvement, as reduced government spending more than offset softer revenue collections.
• Preliminary data showed overall revenue slipped 4.3% ($12.2Mn) to $268.2Mn during the month. However, an 8.7% ($22.9Mn) contraction in expenditure to $238.8Mn underpinned the stronger fiscal position.
• Tax receipts grew modestly, up 1.5% ($3.4Mn) to $237.9Mn, led by higher Value-Added Tax (VAT) inflows, which rose $18.7Mn to $119.2Mn. Gains were also recorded in taxes on financial and capital transactions (up $4.4Mn to $11.5Mn) and taxes on use and permission to use goods (up $2.6Mn to $24.0Mn). By contrast, property tax collections fell $11.4Mn to $10.5Mn, as last year’s numbers had been boosted by arrears payments.
• Non-tax revenue saw a steep 34% ($15.6Mn) decline to $30.3Mn, reflecting lower interest and dividend receipts.
• On the expenditure side, recurrent outlays totalled $225.7Mn, down 7.1% ($17.2Mn) from the prior year. Subsidies fell by $8.7Mn to $11.2Mn, while other payments dropped by $9.0Mn to $16.3Mn, largely due to timing differences on insurance premium payments. Capital expenditure decreased by $5.6Mn to $13.1Mn.
• Meanwhile, the government’s debt stock grew by $72.3Mn in May. Borrowings of $224.4Mn were sourced entirely from the domestic market, with repayments of $152.1Mn directed almost exclusively to domestic creditors (99.5%), and the remainder (0.5%) to foreign obligations.

(Source: CariCRIS)