• Tropical Battery Company Limited will begin collecting spent lithium batteries for recycling in early 2022. 
• The St. Andrew-based company is securing the requisite certifications and will export the spent lithium batteries from consumer electronics and electric vehicles to be recycled by a leading international recycling partner that recovers 95% of the elements for sale back to global battery manufacturers. 
• Tropical Battery is responding to the need for an environmentally friendly end-of-life solution for lithium batteries, building on its legacy as the leading exporter of spent automotive batteries for recycling. The growing popularity of lithium-based energy storage solutions in renewable energy systems, and the emergence of an electric mobility ecosystem in Jamaica demand action to align Jamaica with the cyclical economy of tomorrow. 
• Tropical Battery will collect spent lithium batteries in specialized receptacles at all its six locations across Jamaica. The company is encouraging members of the public to play their part by bringing in spent lithium batteries for recycling and is offering a 5% discount on in-store-store purchases to customers who do. 
• While this will allow the company to continue its longstanding commitment to environmental stewardship and the preservation of Jamaica’s natural heritage, it will also help to increase non-core revenues which could have an impact on Tropical’s bottom-line.

(Source: JSE & NCBCM Research)

• The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) will help the Dominican Republic to strengthen and consolidate its integrity mechanisms in the public procurement system, strengthen internal control, promote open government and public ethics, and support the implementation of public procurement policies, and transparency of public spending. 
• This assistance is well needed as the country has and continues to struggle with political risks, especially corruption. While Abinader and its allies hold majority in both houses of Congress, additional allegations tied to Adinader and top government officials may weaken his ability to pass reforms to combat corruption as was promised in his campaign. In Transparency International’s 2020 Corruption Perception Index, the Dominican Republic received a score of 28, tied for 137^th among 180 markets ranked. For reference, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago rank 69^th and 86^th
• During the Regional Policy Dialogue on Transparency and Integrity, in which President Luis Abinader participated, the general manager of IDB Invest, James Scriven, said that support shows a commitment to transparency and integrity in Latin America and the Caribbean, as this is a key element to promote sustainable and inclusive economic recovery in the post-pandemic within the Vision 2025 strategy. 
• According to Scriven, by supporting countries in advancing their transparency and integrity agendas, the IDB promotes better use of public resources and is giving a strong signal that the rule of law and its institutions are being strengthened in the region. These are important pillars for the attraction of private investments that will be vital pillars to sustain the continuous development of our region.

(Source: Dominican Today & NCBCM Research)

• Resilient private consumption and investment will drive Colombia's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic over the coming quarters, particularly as the labour market strengthens and household incomes rise.  
• Fitch Solutions has revised its 2021 real GDP growth forecast to 8.5%, from 6.7% previously, as macroeconomic data continues to surprise to the upside. In Q321, the economy grew 13.2% y-o-y and 8.4% q-o-q. Fitch maintained its 2022 growth forecast of 3.9%. 
• However, rising headwinds to investment and exports will cause growth to slow in the medium-to-long term, and growth is expected to average 3.2% from 2023-2025.

(Source: Fitch Solutions)

• Canada's annual inflation rate accelerated again in October, matching a February 2003 high, led by sharp rises in gasoline and housing prices, data showed on Wednesday. Analysts expect more heat ahead.  
• Inflation rose to 4.7%, in line with expectations, up from 4.4% in September, Statistics Canada data showed. It was the seventh consecutive month in which headline inflation topped the Bank of Canada's 1-3% control range. 
• Prices rose in all eight major component groups for the second month in a row and analysts said that trend was likely to continue. 
• "There is more heat ahead, particularly with the Vancouver port disruptions. And I think we are going to get inflation crossing well above 5% by the end of the year," said Derek Holt, vice president of capital market economics at Scotiabank.

(Source: Reuters)

• The prospects of speedier interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve and ongoing supply chain disruptions weighed on Wall Street Wednesday, while oil dropped on concerns of oversupply and dwindling demand.
• U.S. stocks spent most of the trading day in negative territory, after a Tuesday boost driven by better than expected U.S. retail numbers. Rising inflation and potent consumer demand suggested to investors the Fed could hike rates quicker, while supply chain concerns drove down retailers like Target and Walmart. 
• "The good news for investors is that aggregate demand appears to be weathering the surge in inflation so far," wrote Bank of America analysts in a note. "The bad news is that the combination of robust demand and a large supply shock makes a strong case for Fed tightening."

(Source: Reuters)

• Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) increased its the policy interest rate, the rate offered to deposit-taking institutions on overnight placements with BOJ, by 50 basis points to 2.00% per annum, effective 17 November 2021. 
• The decision by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) was unanimous and was based on its assessment that this action was necessary to limit the second-round effects of recent shocks, such as supply chain disruptions and adverse weather events. The rate increase is meant to guide inflation back within the target range over the next two years, following the breach of the upper limit of the 4.0% to 6.0% target range for 3 consecutive months. Consumer prices increased by 8.5% in the 12 months to October 2021, the highest since September 2014. 
• The reduction in the level of monetary accommodation will cause market-based interest rates to rise further, which will make the returns on Jamaican dollar assets more attractive relative to foreign currency assets. It will also make saving in Jamaican dollars more attractive and borrowing in Jamaican dollars more expensive. These effects are intended to temper the demand for foreign currency and hence moderate the pace of depreciation in the exchange rate. It is also intended to generally, reduce demand in the economy and with it the ability of businesses to pass on price increases to consumers. 
• Inflation is projected to average 5.5% to 6.5% over the next two years. Inflation will continue to breach the upper limit of the Bank’s target range over the next 10 to 12 months at higher rates than were envisaged in the previous forecast and is projected to peak in the range 8.0% to 9.0% over this period. The inflation forecast assumes, inter-alia, the continued transmission of higher international commodity and shipping prices to domestic processed food, food-related services and energy price inflation as well as a recovery in domestic demand.
• While the higher policy rate will help to stem inflationary pressures, it could undermine the nascent economic recovery through a reduction in investments and private consumption. 
• There could be further monetary tightening in the short term as consistent with meeting its inflation target sustainably in the medium term, the MPC agreed to consider further increases in the Bank’s policy rate (and by extension raising real interest rates, which are currently significantly negative) and to maintain or intensify the accompanying measures at subsequent policy meetings. This position is subject to changes in inflation expectations, other macroeconomic data and, consequently, the inflation outlook evolving as projected.

(Sources: BOJ & NCBCM Research)

• The tourism sector, one of the most severely impacted industries during the pandemic, will be a significant driver of economic recovery in 2022. 
• Fitch Solutions expects that most Western consumers’ willingness to travel will increase in 2022, but that demand will be focused on short-haul destinations in the Caribbean and Southern Europe. This will bolster the recovery across tourism dependent countries such as Jamaica, Barbados and Bahamas in 2022. 
• However, tight travel restrictions in China will depress visits to Asian destinations. The agency also expects that EMs like Thailand and the Philippines will experience a very slow, multi-year recovery. 

(Source: Fitch Solutions & NCBCM Research)

• The Saint Kitts and Nevis (SKN) government will run a fiscal surplus of 1.8% of GDP in 2021 and 2.8% in 2022, from a 5.6% of GDP deficit in 2020, as rebounding economic activity drives strong revenue growth and the government limits expenditure growth. 
• Fitch Solutions has revised its 2021 and 2022 fiscal forecasts to 1.8% and 2.8% respectively, from -3.6% and -2.4% previously as revenues have surprised to the upside in the year through June.  
• It is anticipated that rebounding economic activity will drive revenue growth of 20.0% in 2021 and 5.0% in 2022, while reduced spending on goods, services, transfers and subsidies will support a decline in expenditure by 2.0% in 2021. However, a modest uptick in expenditures, including capital expenditure, is expected in 2022 as the government gradually increases expenditure, which was reduced to limit the challenges of the pandemic on fiscal accounts. 
• Fitch also forecasts that total public debt will fall to 32.3% of GDP in 2025, from 42.2% at end-2020, as primary budget surpluses and GDP growth help reduce the debt burden.

(Source: Fitch Solutions)

• U.S. retail sales surged in October as Americans eagerly started their holiday shopping early to avoid empty shelves amid shortages of some goods because of the ongoing pandemic, giving the economy a lift at the start of the fourth quarter. 
• The solid report from the Commerce Department on Tuesday suggested high inflation was not yet dampening spending, even as worries about the rising cost of living sent consumer sentiment tumbling to a 10-year low in early November. Rising household wealth, thanks to a strong stock market and house prices, as well as massive savings and wage gains appear to be cushioning consumers against the highest annual inflation in three decades. 
• Retail sales jumped 1.7% last month, the largest gain since March, after rising 0.8% in September. It was the third straight monthly advance and topped economists' expectations for a 1.4% increase. Sales soared 16.3% year-on-year in October and are 21.4% above their pre-pandemic level.

(Source: Reuters)

• Britain's job market withstood the end of the government's furlough scheme last month, according to data, which could ease lingering concerns at the Bank of England about the risks of raising interest rates from their pandemic low. 
• The Sterling strengthened as the number of staff on businesses' payrolls in October rose to 0.8% above levels in February 2020, before the coronavirus pandemic hit, and increased by 160,000 on the month. 
• The Bank of England has been watching closely in case unemployment rose after the job-protecting furlough scheme expired at the end of September. 
• "Now that today's labour market data shows that hurdle has been cleared, we think the Bank of England has the green light for interest rate lift-off at their December meeting," Ambrose Crofton, a global market strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, said.

(Source: Reuters)