Business

Barbican Square go-kart track rejected by KSAC

PT Murdoch, a representative of developers who want to build a $10-m go-kart track in an open lot at Barbican Square, addressing residents at a meeting last year to outline the plan.

THE Kingston and St Andrew Corporation (KSAC) has rejected the controversial proposal to build a $10-million go-kart track and amusement park in Barbican Square. The KSAC, in a newspaper advertisement on Sunday, announced the refusal of the project, which had received staunch objection from residen ... Read More

‘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 a ... 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

MILLER... we wanted to ensure that the tax-free status remained as we went as a listed company. 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

Tesla delivers first China cars, plans expansion

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

A worker cleans a Tesla Model S sedan. (Photo: AP)

BEIJING, China TESLA Motors delivered its first eight electric sedans to customers in China yesterday and CEO Elon Musk said the company will build a nationwide network of charging stations and service centers as fast as it can. Tesla probably will invest several hundred million dollars in charging infrastructure in China, Musk told reporters. He said it will open several hundred service centres. "My instructions to the team are to spend money as fast as they can spend it without wasting it," ... Read More

Netflix poised to raise prices after strong 1Q

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

Netflix poised to raise prices after strong 1Q

SAN FRANCISCO Netflix is preparing a sequel unlikely to be a hit with its subscribers. The Internet video service is about to raise its prices for the first time in three years to help pay for more Internet video programming such as its popular political drama "House of Cards." The increase, to take place sometime before July, will hike prices by US$1 or US$2 per month for new customers. The company's nearly 36 million current subscribers will continue to pay US$8 per month for at least the ne ... Read More

Bloomberg invests US$5m in solar-powered lamp

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

NEW YORK, USA FORMER New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's foundation yesterday announced a US$5 million investment in an artsy-looking solar-powered lamp designed for use in off-grid populations in Africa. The lamp, called Little Sun, provides clear, affordable energy to places dependent on costly and toxic kerosene lighting in sub-Saharan Africa, said Bloomberg Philanthropies, the charity of the billionaire businessman and former mayor. The foundation said it will provide a low-interest rate l ... Read More

Businesses more optimistic but expect faster dollar devaluation

STEVEN JACKSON Business reporter jacksons@jamaicaobserver.com | Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

Businesses more optimistic but expect faster dollar devaluation

BUSINESSES were more optimistic towards the end of the last fiscal year despite fears of a faster depreciating currency. The latest Inflation Expectation Survey, which was conducted by the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) in February, showed that optimism was at its highest level since April 2013, even with the Jamaican dollar at record lows. Respondents to the survey said that they expect 7.6 per cent depreciation in the exchange rate over the 12 months to February 2015. That puts the dollar at roughly ... Read More

Bond ladders in retirement planning

Noel Harty | Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

The US rating agencies, Moodys, Standard & Poor and Fitch have prescribed ratings for bonds ranging from investment grade to default. Bonds with high investment grade ratings have the lowest interest rates.

THE closer you get to retirement the more questions you ask about the adequacy of your retirement portfolio. What if you live longer than your investments? How do you maximise your retirement income? Can you survive without a regular pay cheque? Whilst there is no one size fit all strategy in moving from saving for retirement, to living off your retirement portfolio, there are strategies that can help you plan effectively. Investing in bonds is one such strategy and should be considered the fou ... Read More

Everyweh yuh tun makka juk yuh — Phillips

BY KEITH COLLISTER | Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

Peter Phillips

IN his post-budget press conference yesterday, Finance Minister Peter Phillips outlined the context for what he described "as one of the smallest tax packages in recent history, " referring to the $6.7 billion in additional revenue measures announced in his budget speech last Thursday afternoon. The minister argued that seeing $1.2 billion of the measures represented the redirection of special consumption tax (SCT) on petrol previously assigned to the Road Maintenance Fund (RMF) back to the ... Read More

McDonald's profit slips

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

McDonald’s is fighting to hold onto customers in the US.

NEW YORK McDonald's is fighting to hold onto customers in the US. The world's biggest hamburger chain said sales at established US locations fell 1.7 per cent in the first three months of the year as guest counts declined. After a decade of consistent growth, sales also declined last year as McDonald's struggled to roll out an array of new menu items and fend off competitors. CEO Don Thompson said in call with analysts and investors yesterday that the company is working to improve its operati ... Read More

Philips shares slump over weak profits

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

Philips CEO Frans van Houten.

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands Shares in Royal Philips, the world's leading light maker, slumped yesterday after the Dutch company reported a drop in first-quarter profits blamed partly on sluggish sales of its health care products and consumer lights. Philips said its net profit for the January-March period was (euro) 138 million (US$190.5 million), 14 per cent lower than for the same quarter of 2013. Sales fell 4.8 per cent to (euro) 5.02 billion. The Amsterdam-based company said profit margins wor ... Read More

Novartis reshapes business with GSK, Lilly deals

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

A Novartis employee in a laboratory of Novartis in Prangins near Nyon, Switzerland. (PHOTO: AP)

GENEVA, Switzerland SWISS pharmaceutical firm Novartis AG launched a major overhaul of its business Tuesday, unveiling a series of multibillion-dollar deals with Britain's GlaxoSmithKline PLC and the US's Eli Lilly & Co that heralds more restructuring in the fast-changing industry. Joseph Jimenez, the CEO of Basel, Switzerland-based Novartis, said the deals with GSK and Eli Lilly reflect "a very dynamic health care environment" and would reduce overall sales at Novartis but boost its profi ... Read More

Earnings and corporate deals lift US stocks

Wednesday, April 23, 2014    

NEW YORK, USA US stocks rose yesterday as more companies reported solid first-quarter earnings. The market also got a lift from deal news. Netflix rose after announcing a big jump in its profit and Botox maker Allergan rose sharply on a takeover bid. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 11 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 1,883 as of 3:02 p.m. (1902 GMT). The Dow Jones industrial average gained 98 points, or 0.6 per cent, to 16,548. The Nasdaq composite rose 46 points, or one per cent, to 4,167 ... Read More



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