Business

'Even more taxes coming'

‘Even more taxes coming’

KPMG Jamaica, the local arm of the global auditing firm, expects more taxes will follow the latest announced measures within this fiscal year. The firm described Government's newly announced tax package as needed but expedient. "So far, new and higher taxes have been necessary. Based on the 2014/1 ... Read More

Marcus James Access continues meteoric rise
Access Financial Services posted a 30 per cent jump in its net profit for the first three months of ... Read More

Sagicor X Fund earns $940m in 2 months
SAGICOR Real Estate X Fund earned $940 million in just two months. The net profit reported for the ... Read More

New LIAT CEO takes office
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – The newly appointed CEO of LIAT, David Evans, arrived from the Unit ... Read More

NCU group wins business model competition

Monday, April 21, 2014    

Happy members of the victorious NCU team.

MANDEVILLE, Manchester — A group of five young entrepreneurs from Northern Caribbean University (NCU) last month won the inaugural National Business Model Competition and $2 million in prize money, according to a news release. Under the business name Herboo Enterprises, the students successfully commercialised an all-natural shampoo-conditioner made from a blend of local herbs and spices, the release said. In addition to the cash prize, the team won an all-expense-paid trip to participat ... Read More

Smartphone as teaching tool

Monday, April 21, 2014    

Digicel’s data expert Altonie Thomas conducts a Data Link-up session at the Digicel store in Juici Beef Plaza, Mandeville, last Saturday.

MANDEVILLE, Manchester — St Elizabeth school teacher Romel Richards is looking forward to incorporating her newly acquired smartphone as a vital tool in helping her to connect with her students. According to a news release from telecommunications provider Digicel, this was her sentiment after purchasing her DL600 smartphone from a store in Juici Beef Plaza, Mandeville during Digicel's Data Link-Up session last Saturday. "Technology is advancing every day, and as a teacher I see where the ... Read More

No Custom Duty on ‘phablets’

Sunday, April 20, 2014 2:12 PM    

a smart phone at left and a tablet at right shown with a phablet

KINGSTON, Jamaica (JIS) -- Effective May 1, ‘phablets’ -- a cross between a smart-phone and a tablet -- will be reclassified and no longer attract customs duties. Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr Peter Phillips made the announcement at the opening of the 2014/15 Budget Debate in Parliament on Thursday, April 17. Dr Phillips said that because the characteristics of phablets were not distinguishable as to whether they are phones or tablets, the decision had been taken to classify ... Read More

Gov’t to tax cheques, ABM withdrawals and point of sale transactions

By Balford Henry and Camilo Thame | Sunday, April 20, 2014    

Audley Shaw

A tax rate of five to 10 cents for every $100 withdrawn from an ABM, swiped at a cash register or written on cheques may not seem so daunting, to some. But taken together, ABM, point-of-sale (POS) and cheque transactions, totalled over $2 trillion for the 12 months to the end of February this year. As a result, the Government expects to collect $2.3 billion over nine months (or $3 billion annualised) from a new levy on transactions through deposit taking institutions and securities dealers. T ... Read More

Expect more local companies to adopt US dollars as functional currency, says ICAJ

Sunday, April 20, 2014    

CHUNG... The economy is moving more towards exports

EXPECT more local companies to adopt US dollars as a functional currency, reasoned the oversight accountant body, Institute of Chartered Accountants of Jamaica (ICAJ). A growing number of businesses and services are for the first time quoting in US dollars, including used car dealership and even wedding make-up artists. The accountants therefore expect a shift with more financials reflecting US dollars especially in the export sector. "The economy is moving more towards exports for instance C ... Read More

Illegally residing in the US without a passport?

Tell Claudienne with Claudienne Edwards | Sunday, April 20, 2014    

Illegally residing in the US without a passport?

Dear Claudienne, I need your help in figuring out how to help a friend. My friend left Jamaica to spend a holiday in the US when he was about 16 or 17. He decided to live there and has been doing so ever since. Unfortunately, he did not avail himself of any of the avenues to becoming a resident or citizen. He now wants to retun home but has no clue how to go about it. What has made his situation more difficult is that during his years in the US, because of moving around he has somewhow lost his ... Read More

Kremi undergoing $10-m packaging upgrade, headed for more store shelves

Sunday, April 20, 2014    

Kremi workers package ice-cream cakes.

Kremi ice cream maker, Caribbean Cream, plans to spend $10 million on upgrading its packaging over the next two years. The new look, which was debuted at EXPO Jamaica 2014, is expected to help boost sales in the retail, supermarket and convenience stores . "In our opinion, we could have been doing better, so the rebranding will help with sales," said Christopher Clarke, CEO. Caribbean Cream ended its most recent financial year, which ended February 28, 2014, with 27 per cent higher revenue, o ... Read More

Target hackers may take years to find

Sunday, April 20, 2014    

A man walks through a hall at Secret Service offices in Washington. (PHOTO: AP)

WASHINGTON, USA SECRET Service investigators say they are close to gaining a full understanding of the methods hackers used to breach retailer Target's computer systems last December. But the agency says it could take years to identify the criminals who stole some 40 million debit and credit card numbers of Target shoppers and other personal information from as many as 70 million people in the pre-Christmas breach. And it may take even longer to bring the offenders to justice. The federal inv ... Read More

Facebook rolls out location-sharing feature

Sunday, April 20, 2014    

Using your smartphone’s GPS system, it will tell your Facebook friends — provided they have the feature turned on — that you are nearby. (PHOTO: AP)

NEW YORK, USA FACEBOOK users in the US will soon be able to see which of their friends are nearby using a new feature the company launched last week. The "Nearby Friends" feature must be turned on by the user, so people shouldn't expect to broadcast their location unknowingly. It will use your smartphone's GPS system to tell your Facebook friends you are nearby -- provided they have the feature turned on as well. Rather than share your exact location, it will show only that you are nearby, say ... Read More

PepsiCo's profit rises on snack sales, price hikes

Sunday, April 20, 2014    

PepsiCo’s profit rises on snack sales, price hikes

NEW YORK, USA PepsiCo reported a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit as the company sold more snacks around the world and hiked prices, including on its drinks. The company, which also makes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Mountain Dew and Tropicana, said global snack volume rose two per cent in the period. Global beverage volume was unchanged from a year ago, including in its closely watched North American drinks unit. Coca-Cola also reported flat volume in the North America market earlier this wee ... Read More



ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

Poll

Will you close your bank account because of Government's tax on withdrawals?
Yes
No


View Results »

ADVERTISEMENT

Today's Cartoon

Click image to view full size editorial cartoon
ADVERTISEMENT