• In a historic move to strengthen bilateral and commercial relations, Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) and Chile have signed a first-of-its-kind partial scope trade agreement. The signing took place at the T&T’s Ministry of Trade's head office in Port of Spain on April 25, 2025.
• The agreement is set to provide preferential market access for T&T’s energy and non-energy exports under 267 tariff lines into Chile. Through the agreement, 213 tariff lines for locally manufactured products will incur zero duties upon export to Chile. Additionally, products under 54 tariff lines will receive the same duty-free treatment after three years. The agreement also allows for reduced tariffs on products imported by T&T from Chile under 143 tariff lines.
• Trinidad’s Trade Minister, Paula Gopee-Scoon, applauded the agreement, which came after seven years of negotiation. She said former Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley’s official visit to Chile in May 2017 was the catalyst for the signing of the general framework agreement for negotiations. "This agreement reflects the shared understanding that in a world with increasing complexity, our co-operation is not a luxury but a necessity," she said at the signing ceremony.
• "We live in a time where global challenges require global solutions and, beyond that, meaningful partnerships. This agreement forms a key part of that solution in response to the current global economic climate, concerning current geopolitical relations and disruptions in trading arrangements. It seeks to diversify exports and strengthen commercial ties between the two countries."

(Source: Trinidad and Tobago Newsday)

• The U.S. trade deficit in goods widened to a record high in March as businesses ramped up efforts to bring in merchandise ahead of President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs, suggesting trade was a large drag on economic growth in the first quarter.
• While some of the imported goods ended up in warehouses at wholesalers, economists said this would not blunt the anticipated hit on gross domestic product from the deterioration in the trade deficit.
• The report from the Commerce Department's Census Bureau prompted economists to sharply downgrade their GDP estimates for last quarter to show a steeper decline rather than growth just stalling. Goldman Sachs now sees GDP contracting at an 0.8% annualised rate while JPMorgan forecasts output to decline at a 1.75% pace.
• The goods trade gap increased 9.6% to $162.0Bn, the highest on record, the Commerce Department's Census Bureau said. Economists estimated trade could have sliced off as much as 1.9 percentage points from GDP last quarter.
• Goods imports soared by $16.3Bn to an all-time high of $342.7Bn. They were driven by a 27.5% jump in imports of consumer goods. There were also solid increases in imports of automotive vehicles and capital goods. But imports of industrial supplies, which had been boosted by non-monetary gold, declined 13.5%. Food imports fell, as did those of other goods.
• Economists have cautioned that imports, which are a subtraction in the calculation of GDP, could greatly exaggerate an anticipated economic slowdown in gross domestic product growth in the January-March quarter.
• Nonetheless, the uncertainty fueled by the often chaotic tariff policy, which has plunged the United States into a damaging trade war with China, is causing tremors throughout the economy. A separate report from the Conference Board showed its consumer confidence index dropped 7.9 points to 86.0 this month, the lowest reading since May 2020.

(Source: Reuters)

• Eurozone consumers raised their inflation expectations for the coming years in March, before the U.S. imposed tariffs on most nations, launching a global trade war that could sap economic growth, a European Central Bank survey showed on Tuesday.
• Inflation over the next 12 months was seen at 2.9%, up from 2.6% in the previous month's survey. The three-years-ahead figure rose to 2.5% from 2.4%, the ECB said based on a survey of 19,000 consumers in 11 euro zone nations.
• While such a rise would normally worry the ECB, the figures predate the U.S. tariffs, which have fundamentally changed the global economic outlook.
• The euro has strengthened, energy prices have fallen and economic growth is likely to be weaker, factors that are all likely to lower price growth. In addition, China, facing reduced access to the U.S. market, could also dump cheap goods on Europe, lowering inflation further.
• The outlook has changed so much that the ECB cut interest rates again in April, warning about weak growth. Some policymakers even see a risk that the ECB will again undershoot its 2% inflation target. The changes are also unlikely to be temporary, and the world is facing a profound shift in how nations interact economically, financially and diplomatically, the ECB has argued.

(Source: Reuters)

• Finance and Public Service Minister, Hon. Fayval Williams, highlighted the Government’s focus on maintaining fiscal discipline and continuing to develop the country’s infrastructure.
• She was speaking during the 2025 Spring Meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington DC last week. Roads, water systems and climate resilience initiatives were the main topic of discussion during high-level meetings with the multi-lateral partners.
• “We remain committed to our debt-to-GDP (gross domestic product) targets, our fiscal targets and ensuring fiscal prudence in Jamaica,” she affirmed.
• This year’s meetings come amid significant global economic uncertainty, which Minister Williams acknowledged. She noted that “Jamaica is a very open, very connected nation to the rest of the world, and so we have to be extremely mindful of the impact of what’s going on in the rest of the world on us,” she said.

(Source: JIS)

• Jamaican businesses and organisations now have access to homegrown Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions to increase productivity, improve operational efficiency, and drive innovation.
• Vox Technology Limited, a company that specialises in cutting-edge AI products for various industries to enhance efficiency, safety, and customer experiences, was officially launched at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in New Kingston on Friday, April 25, 2025. The entity customises solutions for healthcare, tourism, security, insurance, transport and logistics, telecommunications, warehouse management and inventory, finance, and national security, among other industries.
• Minister of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport, Hon. Daryl Vaz, said the launch marks the beginning of a bold new chapter for Jamaica – one rooted in innovation, driven by technology, and powered by purpose. “It represents what’s possible when Jamaican talent meets global ambition, and when we choose to build rather than borrow, when we decide to shape the future, rather than wait for it. Vox is not just a tech start-up; it’s a statement that Jamaica is ready to lead in the digital age,” he noted.
• The work being done by Vox Technology directly aligns with several of the Ministry’s core strategic objectives. For example, the company’s expertise in Edge computing and telecommunications will help the Government bridge the digital divide as it expands broadband access across the island through the Universal Service Fund (USF).
• In addition, Minister Vaz noted that Vox can help modernise Jamaica’s transport system to make it smarter, safer, and more efficient, and strengthen energy resilience with utility and energy AI, allowing for the monitoring of the grid, prediction of energy usage and loss reduction. “These contributions are timely and critical, and the Ministry welcomes them and looks forward to working with Vox to deliver on the path of a digitally connected, secure, and inclusive Jamaica.”

(Source: JIS)

• The opposition in the Caribbean twin-island nation of Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) has won a decisive victory in Monday's parliamentary election, preliminary results suggest.
• The win by the centrist United National Congress (UNC) party means that Kamla Persad-Bissessar will be appointed as the next prime minister. Kamla already held the post once before, from 2010 to 2015, but her party was defeated in the last two elections by the centre-left People's National Movement (PNM).
• Preliminary results suggest the UNC, which campaigned on a promise to raise wages and create employment, managed to win several parliamentary seats previously held by the PNM. The PNM is said to be going into the Opposition with 10 to 12 seats from the previous 22 seats.
• PNM leader Keith Rowley conceded defeat late on Monday, saying that it had not been a good night for his party and that it was clear that it had lost the election. Rowley served as prime minister from 2015 to March of this year, when he announced he was stepping down and handing the reins of power to the energy minister, Stuart Young.
• But rather than serving out the remainder of Rowley's term, Young called a snap election just hours after being sworn in as prime minister. The move was widely seen as an attempt by Young to secure a stronger mandate amid criticism by the opposition that his elevation to prime minister was unconstitutional.
• The election came at a time when the country is grappling with a rise in homicides and an economic slump. Of note, the outgoing government declared a state of emergency in December, which stayed in force for 105 days.
• During her campaign, Persad-Bissessar promised to raise wages for public sector workers struggling to meet rising living costs. It was an issue she addressed again after the governing party had conceded defeat.

(Source: BBC News)

• A massive expansion of Mexico's largest seaport is underway as Mexican authorities bet on positive economic growth and the strength of global trade despite the gloomy outlook sparked by U.S. President Donald Trump's trade wars.
• The Mexican government's aim is to transform the Port of Manzanillo on Mexico's Pacific Coast into the busiest seaport in Latin America, capable of processing some 10 million 20-foot (6.1-meter) containers, according to the Mexican Navy, which runs the facility. It is already Mexico's largest port and the third largest in Latin America, handling nearly 4 million 20-foot containers in 2024.
• The multibillion-dollar port expansion is one of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum's major infrastructure projects. The investment is part of Mexico's efforts to defy an economic downturn as Trump's trade wars have created widespread financial uncertainty.
• In Manzanillo, the U.S. tariffs have not slowed trade, according to Julieta Juarez Ochoa, the port's commercialisation manager. She said many imports arriving at Manzanillo come from Asia and are largely used in domestic manufacturing. "We don't see any real impact (of the U.S. tariffs), and we don't foresee a significant impact," she said.
• The expansion will boost Manzanillo's capacity to handle containerised cargo and hydrocarbon products. It is slated to be finished by the end of Sheinbaum's term in 2030, she added.

(Source: Reuters)

• Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's Liberals staged a major political comeback to retain power in parliamentary elections, fuelled by a backlash against U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and comments on making Canada the 51st U.S. state.
• With almost all votes counted, results from Elections Canada showed that the Liberals had won 168 electoral districts, followed by the Conservatives with 144. Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, who just three months ago had looked certain to sweep the polls, lost his seat in the Ontario district of Carleton to Liberal Bruce Fanjoy.
• The Liberals, who have been in power for more than nine years, were 20 percentage points behind in surveys in January before the unpopular Justin Trudeau announced he was quitting as prime minister and Trump started threatening tariffs and annexation.
• "It was the 'anybody-but-Conservative' factor, it was the Trump tariff factor, and then it was the Trudeau departure ... which enabled a lot of left-of-center voters and traditional Liberal voters to come back to the party," said Shachi Kurl, president of the Angus Reid Institute polling firm.
• Despite the gains, the Liberals will not get the outright majority that Carney had sought, to help him negotiate with Trump on the tariffs threatening Canada's economy. They needed 172 of the House of Commons' 343 seats to be able to rule without the support of a smaller party.
• "Our old relationship with the United States, a relationship based on steadily increasing integration, is over," Carney said in a victory speech in Ottawa. "The system of open global trade anchored by the United States, a system that Canada has relied on since the Second World War, a system that, while not perfect, has helped deliver prosperity for our country for decades, is over.

(Source: Reuters)

• The Bank of Japan is expected to keep interest rates steady on Thursday and warn of heightening risks to the fragile economy that could keep policy in a holding pattern, as U.S. tariffs continue to hit confidence.
• The debate may be swayed by what BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda heard in Washington last week, where the International Monetary Fund slashed its global growth forecasts and policymakers fret of further damage to their economies from U.S. trade policy.
• Speaking after a meeting with counterparts from G20 major economies, Ueda said the BOJ will continue to raise interest rates - on condition the economy sustains a moderate recovery and keeps underlying inflation on track to hit its 2% target.
• While the BOJ is set to downgrade its growth forecasts, it is expected to signal that risks from higher U.S. tariffs won't derail wages and price hikes seen as crucial for further rate increases, sources have told Reuters. But the path towards policy normalisation may take longer than previously expected as trade tensions prod big exporters, which had spear-headed pay increases up till this year, to consider slowing or interrupting hikes next year.
• "The balance of risks is on the downside for growth and for inflation," as the tariff-induced uncertainty could discourage firms from sustaining bumper pay hikes in next year's wage talks, a senior IMF official said, projecting the BOJ to push back the timing of further rate hikes.
• At the two-day meeting ending on Thursday, the BOJ is widely expected to keep short-term interest rates steady at 0.5%. It is also seen pushing back the timing for durably hitting its 2% inflation target in a quarterly report, from around the latter half of fiscal 2025 in current projections made in January.

(Source: Reuters)

• Prime Minister, Dr. the Most Hon. Andrew Holness, met with private-sector leaders on Thursday (April 24) to discuss urgent international trade-related issues, including global tariffs and the existing domestic and world economic environment. Addressing the meeting, Dr. Holness assured members of the private sector that the Government will continue to strategically engage bilateral partners on critical issues.
• “So, you would have noticed that the Government have taken a very strategic approach; we have avoided hyperbolic comments. We have been very measured in our statements, and we have sought to engage… that’s critical. Our policy is that we must always be at the table, because that’s the only way we’re going to know what is happening; and I give the private sector assurance that you will not have to suffer at the altar of ideology”
• “We saw it coming a long time ago. So I give you that commitment… we are changing. The Government is making sure that what we do is strategic and you would have seen that. There were many concerns about whether or not Jamaica would be asked to do away with Cuban doctors, and visa issues and mass deportation and all of these. We have been at the table and we have been negotiating… in our general engagement,” the Prime Minister said.
• Holness indicated that, annually, he meets with critical stakeholders in the United States. These, he said, include but are not limited to representatives of the Justice Department and the Department of Defence. Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina said the Government will defend Jamaica’s interests and balance them as best as possible with the region.
• She further noted that processes exist, “not only for us to take defensive positions but proactive ones, as well, where you see opportunities”. Senator Johnson Smith indicated that other matters discussed during the meeting include – Jamaica’s geostrategic positioning, issues relating to the new tariffs that have been imposed and other changes which have been occurring globally; energy; plans in respect of reducing bureaucracy and improving productivity which are critical pillars to Jamaica’s growth agenda; diversification of market access and leveraging the access that already exists but is underutilised.

(Source: JIS)