Business
Jamaica Business News, Economy, and Financial Sector Information
AGI's share value could be listed below its capital base
Advantage General Insurance Company (AGI) may value its shares at $1 for each dollar of capital it holds in its upcoming initial public offering, unless it pays out a big dividend before going public. A one-to-one market value — the total issued shares of the company times the share price — to capital rat ...more
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Jamaica needs many more Barclay Ewarts to drive a manufacturing renaissance
Sunday, February 12, 2012
IN his tribute to Barclay Ewart, his friend, legendary entrepreneur Danny Williams, described the young Barclay Ewart as a modest person, who, despite his outstanding achievements in the field of sports, never let it go to his head. He was however "d ...more
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'Thief racked up a $380,000 bill on my credit card'
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Dear Claudienne I got your e-mail address from a friend of mine who suggested that you might be able to help me with my situation. I am a Jamaican currently on a training programme in Canada. My Jamaican Scotia bank credit card was stolen from my ...more
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Last house standing
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Eiji Suzuki's home stands firm in the aftermath of the Great East Japanese Earthquake and tsunami that devastated the country on March 11 last year. One may think this would make him a happy man. But not when the house is the only one left standing ...more
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Mission Possible
Sunday, February 12, 2012
IF you like action-packed, adrenaline-pumping, nail-biting movies then Mission: Impossible — Ghost Protocol is the show to watch for 2012. From one scene to the next this movie keeps the viewers on the edge of their seats just begging for more. ...more
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Erica Wynter: Helping small businesses deal with the paperwork
Sunday, February 12, 2012
WHILE many start-ups have problems registering and keeping their books up-to-date, one builds its business off those issues. C & E Innovational Services was founded in 2009 by Erica Wynter. The company offers bearer and other business services. ...more
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'Get dressed up and corporate mingle'
Sunday, February 12, 2012
With over 12 per cent of the population unemployed and the economy static, it's understandable that a "Corporate Mingle", aimed at putting job-hunters and employers together, would be a hit in Jamaica. Corporate Mingle, initiated by Creative Media a ...more
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Cargo airline expands operations from Miami to Montego Bay
Sunday, February 12, 2012
AIRFREIGHT company Exec Direct Aviation Services (EDA) on Friday launched services from the Miami International Airport (MIA) to Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay. The service to Montego Bay is being provided on demand as EDA expands its ...more
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POLLS: Did you watch the Super Bowl?
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Yes, but just for the advertisements 6.65% Yes, just for the game itself 11.15% Yes, for both the game and advertisements 29.59% No, I did not watch the Super Bowl. ...more
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US on pace for US$1T deficit despite January dip
Sunday, February 12, 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal deficit was lower through the first four months of the budget year than the same period last year. Still, the deficit is expected to top US$1 trillion for the fourth year in a row, putting more pressure on Congress ...more
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Greek PM says default would lead to 'chaos'
Sunday, February 12, 2012
ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greece's future in the eurozone came under renewed threat Friday as popular protests again turned violent and dissent grew among its lawmakers after European leaders demanded deeper spending cuts. The country's beleaguere ...more
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...Trade deficit widens
Sunday, February 12, 2012
WASHINGTON (AFP) - On the eve of a visit by China's vice president and heir-apparent, the Commerce Department reported Friday that the US trade deficit widened to a six month high, thanks in large part to imports from China. Official data showed t ...more
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Key events in the history of Eastman Kodak
Sunday, February 12, 2012
HERE are key events in the history of Eastman Kodak Company, which announced plans Thursday to stop making digital cameras and some other consumer devices: 1880 — George Eastman begins commercial production of dry plates for photography in a r ...more
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Spurring growth in the C'bbean
Friday, February 10, 2012
AS the Caribbean region continues to experience lacklustre economic performances resulting in rising unemployment, crime and poverty levels, solutions must be sought to spur growth. Last month, the Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for ...more
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Columbus Communications makes multibillion-dollar telecoms investment in the region
Friday, February 10, 2012
THE conference, the only C-level meeting for the Caribbean wholesale market, opened with an insightful keynote presentation by Brendan Paddick, Chairman of Columbus Communications, parent company of Flow. In a departure from the norm, the keynote pr ...more
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Finance Minister Phillips' very difficult task
Friday, February 10, 2012
AT first glance, Jamaica's current fiscal situation, as revealed by Finance Minister Dr Peter Phillips at Wednesday's Jamaica House post-Cabinet press conference, looks significantly worse, or as he put it "disastrously off track", than many expected ...more
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Jamaicansmusic.com goes global
Friday, February 10, 2012
NOT many 23-year-olds have an office in Indonesia, despite having no local headquarters and doing much of their business at cafés. Even fewer can claim to be CEO of one of the 15 most popular websites on Facebook, with almost two million fans ...more
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Jamaican homeowners facing serious troubles
Friday, February 10, 2012
PRIOR to 2011 foreclosures were a rarity in Jamaica, according to the National Land Agency (NLA), but now the island has seen the rate shoot up by a phenomenal 2,550 per cent The NLA, where foreclosure applications are filed and approved via the reg ...more
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How safe is the air you breathe, the surface you touch and the food you eat?
Friday, February 10, 2012
IF you and I go to a restaurant, we each order whatever we want to put into our body... However at that same restaurant, you and I have no choice but to breathe the same air. Recent outbreaks of Legionaries disease has occurred in major hotels aroun ...more
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Airlift still high on regional agenda
Friday, February 10, 2012
MINISTERS of tourism and civil aviation across the Eastern Caribbean met yesterday in St Vincent to discuss and devise strategic solutions to tourism and aviation issues and challenges currently confronting the sub-region. This meeting follows a re ...more
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All That Jazz!
Friday, February 10, 2012
Brian Pengelley (right), sales director at Red Stripe, enjoys the Jamaica Jazz and Blues Festival with Chris Berry at the Trelawny Multi-Purpose Stadium in Trelawny last weekend. more
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Financial Education
Friday, February 10, 2012
Professor Evan Duggan (far right), Executive Director of the Mona School of Business, UWI, is pleased to welcome Bruce Bowen (far left), CEO, Scotiabank Jamaica Ltd/ President, Jamaica Bankers Association to the opening ceremony of the Caribbean Exe ...more
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'LESS THAN JUNK': S&P lowers Belize's credit rating deeper
Friday, February 10, 2012
ONE of the leading international credit rating agencies has downgraded Belize's credit status a notch deeper into junk territory, despite giving an improved outlook on the economy. The Wall Street-based Standard & Poor's Ratings Services said on ...more
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Barbados consortium wins regional ferry contract
Friday, February 10, 2012
THE Barbados-based Fast Caribbean Limited has been selected to manage a regional ferry service scheduled to come on stream this year, Trinidad's Transport Minister Devant Maharaj has announced. Initially, the ferry will carry passengers, vehicles a ...more
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Montserrat 'ready' for geothermal energy developers
Friday, February 10, 2012
Montserrat is set to dig deeper towards an economic windfall it is hoping to gain by exploiting geothermal energy from the active volcano that has laid waste to two-thirds of the island. The British Leeward Island territory has invited expressions o ...more
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Working group set up to study Caricom associate membership
Friday, February 10, 2012
THE Caribbean Community (Caricom) Council of Ministers has agreed to establish a working group to look at issues pertaining to associate membership of Caricom. At its one-day meeting at the Caricom Secretariat's Georgetown, Guyana headquarters on Tu ...more
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'Republic' records TT$272-million profit
Friday, February 10, 2012
TRINIDAD & Tobago's Republic Bank Group has recorded increased profits for the first quarter of its financial year. For the first quarter ended December 31, 2011, the bank said it posted a profit attributable to shareholders of TT$272 million. ...more
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ManU third in football money league behind Spanish giants Real and Barca
Friday, February 10, 2012
MANCHESTER United continue to lead the way as the highest-earning Premier League club, but remain behind Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona in football's rich list. According to the 2012 Deloitte Football Money League, published today, six of ...more
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BMW aims for top spot in 2012 as luxury sales soar
Friday, February 10, 2012
BMW (BMWG.DE) posted record car sales for 2011 and forecast that a boom in luxury cars would keep it ahead of rivals this year as the world's biggest maker of premium cars enjoys strong demand from China and the United States. The Munich-based compa ...more
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Toyota's net income drops by over 50 per cent
Friday, February 10, 2012
TOYOTA Motor Corporation (TMC) earlier this week announced financial results for the nine months ended December 31, 2011. On a consolidated basis, net revenues for the nine months totalled 12,881.1 billion yen, a decrease of 10.2 per cent compared ...more
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The Art and Science of Making Money
Thursday, February 09, 2012
Despite the developments in technology and differences in trends that emerge over time, there is one financial certainty that will probably remain constant. Most persons - regardless of age, gender, education, nationality, status or creed - will expr ...more
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Move over movie buffs
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
PALACE Amusement Company and SportsMax have launched islandwide screenings of live sports events, a prospect that is expected to bolster weakened movie attendance. The initiative, called "SportsMax Cine Zone" kicked off on Sunday, with an invitation ...more
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MJ Body Concept Spa proved you have to keep trying
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
WITH just over two years in operation, MJ Body Concept Spa is committed to "making a beautiful difference" in the lives of its many clients, said Juliet Thompson, the business' managing director. Thompson has been in the business of beauty treatment ...more
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A man of his word: Mayer Matalon, 1922 - 2012
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Mayer Matalon was well known for his success as a private businessman. With his brothers, Zackie, Aaron, Moses, Eli, Owen, and Vernon, he changed the face of Jamaican business through a massive expansion of the ICD group and its housing company, WIHC ...more
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Oil explorer gets time to find partner
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
The Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) has given Rainville Energy four more months to get an investment partner on board its oil exploration work on three blocks offshore Jamaica. In a press release on Monday, Sagres Energy, the parent of Rainvi ...more
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Africa, the new frontier for GK
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
IN its thrust to become a global consumer group, GraceKennedy (GK) plans to earn at least 15 per cent of its revenue from Africa in another decade. Yesterday, GK Group CEO Don Wehby said the conglomerate is also targeting North America and Europe to ...more
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UNESCO boosts tourism at ancient shrines
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
JUST how much is a World Heritage Site registration worth? For one Japanese rural region hard hit by last year's earthquake and tsunami, the answer is hundreds of thousands of tourists and hundreds of new jobs. A little more than three months after ...more
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Is your CEO still on the company’s bridge
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Before January 13 and the tragic accident that sank one of Italy's biggest cruise ship, the Costa Concordia, the name Francesco Schettino, was perhaps not very well-known. Schettino aka 'Captain Coward' was that ship's skipper and is today, ignominio ...more
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Keeping the playing field level
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
COMPETITION is a fundamental cornerstone of market economies. It not only fosters economic efficiency, but also promotes consumer welfare and protection. With the opening up of sectors such as telecommunications and the introduction of new players i ...more
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A case for gold and silver
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
With the current global economy in disarray, investors are wondering what they can invest in that will generate returns and protect their wealth. With countries such as Greece, Italy and Spain all facing debt problems, there is definitely a palpable ...more
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For Facebook 'Hacker Way' is way of life
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — Facebook's billionaire CEO Mark Zuckerberg calls himself a hacker. For most people, that word means something malicious — shady criminals who listen in on private voicemails, or anonymous villains who cripple websites and ...more
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Jobs lookalike angel ad 'disrespectful'
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
TAIPEI,Taiwan — A Taiwanese television commercial featuring a Steve Jobs look-alike angel complete with white wings and a halo has caused uproar, with critics saying it is disrespectful towards Apple's late founder. The commercial shows well-k ...more
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'Nationalising South Africa's mines not a viable option'
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
CAPE TOWN, South Africa - Nationalising South Africa's mines is not a viable option for the country's key sector and has been ruled out by the ruling party, the mines minister said yesterday, in a move welcomed by industry. "We have consistently mai ...more
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Corporate profits aren't what they seem
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — Is the great profit engine of corporate America running out of steam? While other parts of the economy struggled the past two years, large companies managed to rack up higher profits quarter after quarter. Now reality is catchi ...more
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Threats from Iran push up oil prices
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — Oil prices climbed above US$98 ($8,408) per barrel yesterday after Iran again threatened to cut off supplies to Europe. Iranian lawmakers are pushing a plan to halt crude exports crude to Europe before the European Union begins ...more
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Yum Brands posts 30% profit rise
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
LOUISVILLE, Kentucky — Yum Brands Inc, owner of the Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and KFC fast-food chains, said Monday that its fourth-quarter profit rose 30 per cent with a recipe of strong overseas growth mixed with a sales turnaround at Pizza Hut in ...more
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China forges Arab ties, hedging bets in the Gulf
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — To celebrate Chinese New Year last month, Dubai's swankiest hotel bathed its sail-shaped facade in red lighting accented with an image of a twisting golden dragon. The gesture by the US$2,300 ($98,490)-a-night Bur ...more
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UBS's profit slide in fallout from rogue trader
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
GENEVA, Switzerland — Switzerland's biggest bank UBS AG saw its profits slide by 76 per cent in the fourth quarter, in a further sign that a US$2 billion ($171.6 billion) rogue trading scandal last year has dented business at a time of economic ...more
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BP back in black with a bang
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
LONDON, England — BP returned to profit with a bang last year, posting net earnings of US$23.9 billion ($2 trillion) yesterday as the British energy giant prepares for a criminal trial over the US Gulf of Mexico oil spill disaster. BP announce ...more
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Disney profits up
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Sa-Nye, 1, and Amya, 3 (only first name provided) pose with Mickey Mouse outside The Disney Soda Fountain & Studio Store on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. Walt Disney Co posted a US$1.46 billion ($125.3 billion) net profit for its first quar ...more
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Toyota lifts profit forecast as disaster woes fade
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
TOKYO, Japan — Toyota's quarterly profit slid 13.5 per cent on production setbacks caused by last year's tsunami disaster and the flooding in Thailand, but Japan's top automaker raised its annual earnings forecast, saying a recovery is on track ...more
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Glencore, Xstrata agree to merger
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
LONDON, England — ANGLO-SWISS mining group Xstrata PLC announced plans yesterday to merge with commodities trading giant Glencore International PLC in a deal that will create the world's fourth largest natural resources group. The combined com ...more
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Greeks to brief eurozone on tentative debt deal
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
A spokesman for Greece's private creditors says Greek Premier Lucas Papademos will soon tell eurozone finance ministers the contents of a deal to reduce the country's massive debt. Frank Vogl said represen-tatives of the Institute of International F ...more
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Rating Agency calls for multilateral support
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
FITCH Ratings Agency said on Monday that it expects Jamaica's current account deficit to ease this year but warned that multilateral support is needed. Jamaica's current account deficit — the amount of foreign exchange Jamaica spends above the ...more
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Coca-Cola adjusted results beat Street
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — Coca-Cola reported an effervescent fourth quarter yesterday, as the company sold more of its drinks globally and its earnings beat analyst expectations. Coca-Cola is benefiting from raising prices in North America, where consum ...more
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Can Jamaica get down to business?
Sunday, February 05, 2012
IT is too early to describe the new government as "slow out of the blocks", as it is the first 100 days that is used as the international benchmark to assess whether a new ministerial team has "hit the ground running". The yardstick in assessing the ...more
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Shhh! This boutique's a secret
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Shhh Boutique boast that it is "where the best fashions are kept secret". But the store itself is also somewhat hidden, tucked away off Hope Road and its 24-hour traffic. "Prior to opening the store, I operated as a personal shopping stylist and wen ...more
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Building brand Jamaica in Japan
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Less than a ten-minute drive from the Embassy of Jamaica in Tokyo, Ambassador Claudia Barnes and I sit down to dine at arguably the finest Jamaican restaurant in the country. "I will have the usual, and I brought a guest from Jamaica — a journ ...more
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Trusting in units
Sunday, February 05, 2012
FANCY dabbling in the stock market but not sure how to go about it? One way to get your feet wet is to pool your money with the savings of thousands of other people in a unit trust. Unit trusts enable investors of all types to put their savings in a ...more
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Help me get my son back
Sunday, February 05, 2012
Dear Claudienne On June 14, 2010, my three-year-old son who was born in Britain was abducted by his father from my home in rural St Catherine. I had lived with him in England for a while, but ended the relationship with the father prior to the bir ...more
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After IPO, Facebook will face new profit pressures
Sunday, February 05, 2012
California, USA — For all the huge numbers in Facebook's IPO papers, a surprisingly small figure stands out: US$4.39 ($376.44), the amount the site generated per user last year. It's one of the company's major challenges because the total is p ...more
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National Bakery's first Bold Ones graduate
Sunday, February 05, 2012
The eleven graduates of National Bakery's first Bold Ones campaign say it has helped them brand awareness, increase respect and market penetration, and gain local and international contracts. National's chairman, Butch Hendrickson, introduced the $2 ...more
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Ex-Stanford exec tells jurors bank's profits faked
Sunday, February 05, 2012
TEXAS, USA — Jailed financier R Allen Stanford helped fake profit numbers for his Caribbean bank and funnel millions of dollars of depositor funds to a secret Swiss bank account used to pay for personal expenses, bribes to regulators and employ ...more
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HP awards new CEO with US$16.5m pay package
Sunday, February 05, 2012
CALIFORNIA, USA — Hewlett-Packard Co ushered in Meg Whitman as its CEO with a US$16.5 million ($1.4 billion) compensation package that hinges on the one-time politician's ability to lift the stumbling technology company's stock price during the ...more
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eMedia Interactive launches online TV in Jamaica — Part II
Friday, February 03, 2012
HAVING raised US$350,000 via a private placement with Pan Caribbean Financial Services to fund its expansion and launch of iVutv.com online TV, eMedia Interactive has announced a stellar six-member board to guide its 25-year-old President and CEO Tyr ...more
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Jamaica's options diminishing
Friday, February 03, 2012
THIS is one time when I hate to say "I told you so" as it is in relation to Jamaica's economy. This is because it always seems as if the appropriate prediction to make is that implemented policies will not work and will cause our economic situation ...more
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Making Jamaica's creative industries an engine for growth
Friday, February 03, 2012
With unemployment in Jamaica over 12 per cent, a contraction of the economy and anaemic aggregate demand, Jamaica must now look to its strengths and advantages. The country has undoubtedly exhibited a penchant for the creative industries, producing l ...more
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Glad Helpers can find you the right helper for your home
Friday, February 03, 2012
'It's hard to find good help these days'. At least that's what Angelica Barrett thought when she started Glad Helpers, a cleaning service, last October. With a full-time job and a family to take care of, lousy domestic assistance was one frustration ...more
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MoBay to host dental convention
Friday, February 03, 2012
MORE than 300 dental professionals are expected to attend the annual Jamaica Dental Association (JDA) Convention scheduled for the Iberostar Rose Hall Beach and Spa Resort, Montego Bay, February 14-18, 2012. This highly anticipated convention provid ...more
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UK tax threatens Caribbean tourism
Friday, February 03, 2012
The Caribbean is the most tourism-dependent region in the world - but a big drop in visitor numbers is being blamed on Britain's air passenger duty. The region has seen a 16 per cent drop in arrivals from the UK over the last five years which has ha ...more
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Air Jamaica discontinues Kingston-Miami route
Friday, February 03, 2012
Air Jamaica is pulling out of its Kingston to Miami, Florida route, two months after it returned to the gateway in the United States. Monday was the airline's last day in Miami. Efforts to book seats from Norman Manley International in Jamaica to t ...more
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Toyota 'regrets' disruption in Caribbean supplies
Friday, February 03, 2012
Tokyo, JAPAN — Toyota Motor Corporation says supplies to the region suffered last year due to the earthquake and tsunami which damaged factories in Japan. "At least for two weeks after (March 11) disaster, all factory operations stopped, and e ...more
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Accountant details Stanford investment spending
Friday, February 03, 2012
AN accountant who worked for tycoon R Allen Stanford testified Wednesday that he grew increasingly concerned that the financier wouldn't be able to return the US$2 billion he secretly borrowed from investors to pay for business and personal expenses, ...more
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Investment in the Caribbean and Latin America on the decline
Friday, February 03, 2012
LOW levels of current investment by the private and public sectors across Latin America and the Caribbean will prohibit growth when the recession ends. This was the warning delivered by executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin Americ ...more
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American Airlines needs to cut cost by 20 per cent to stay afloat
Friday, February 03, 2012
American Airlines said Wednesday it needed to cut costs by 20 percent to stay afloat, as it met with union representatives to detail a plan for layoffs that reports said would total 13,000 workers. "All workgroups will have total costs reduced by 2 ...more
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Cuba says imports from US off sharply in 2010
Friday, February 03, 2012
Cuban imports from the United States fell sharply in 2010 while the country increasingly turned to trade with ally Venezuela, according to newly released government statistics. The government also announced that agricultural food prices rose 20 per ...more
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IMF questions Argentina's economic reporting
Friday, February 03, 2012
The International Monetary Fund said yesterday that Argentina had made no improvements to its data on inflation and growth, which have raised widespread doubts over the government's economic reporting. "The Executive Board regretted the absence of ...more
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How to achieve your money goals
Thursday, February 02, 2012
Our 2012 Money Manifesto includes a declaration on setting goals, which is an integral part of attaining financial success. It becomes much easier to make the right decisions with money when you're focused on what you want to accomplish in the future ...more
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Tourism industry honours Stewart with Lifetime Achievement Award
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
A Jamaican businessman won the top accolade at the world tourism industry's annual gala attended by 1,000 of the sector's leading figures in London last week. Gordon 'Butch' Stewart, the founder and chairman of Sandals Resorts International, was hon ...more
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$2-B CASH CHASM as tax revenues fall
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
A $2-billion chasm has opened in the Government's accounts as tax revenues have fallen below target over the last nine months, raising the spectre of additional spending cuts, higher taxes and more austerity for ordinary Jamaicans. The new finance m ...more
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2011 saw drastic loan cuts at CDB
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) drastically cut the approval and disbursement of loans to borrowing member countries (BMCs) in 2011 as many countries of the Caribbean continue to experience contractions of their economies. Speaking yesterday at ...more
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Do you want to cut your energy bills?
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
IT'S rare when a business, especially a start-up, has something good to say about JPS, but the nation's sole electricity distributor isn't always at fault, said Jason Robinson, CEO of Solar Buzz Jamaica. Bad wiring, inefficient equipment and poor pr ...more
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Supermarket brews up first profit
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Jamaica Teas has recovered its initial investment in its Kingston-based supermarket in less than 18 months, according to its latest annual report. "We are pleased that the amount invested in the Kingston supermarket in 2010 has been fully recovered ...more
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Elections were grey spell for paint maker
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
BERGER Paints blamed elections and political change for dampened sales in November and December, which ultimately led to a 37 per cent drop in net profit. The paint manufacturer posted $41.3 million in net profit for the three months ending December ...more
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What's your credit score?
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
If you have cable TV chances are you have seen advertisements for websites like freecreditscore.com. A credit score is a number representing the creditworthiness of an individual and the likelihood that that individual will pay his or her debts. Lend ...more
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Men v women in the workplace... No winner
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
This male versus female jungle, the gender divide, particularly in the area of workplace communication, is a virtual no-man's land (pun intended). Neither you nor I want to tiptoe onto that shrapnel littered field, to name a winner in that eternal de ...more
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Barita net profit rises 59%
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Barita Investments Limited posted 59 per cent higher net profit for the three months to December 31, 2011, when compared to the corresponding period in 2010. The company saw its bottom line grow from $32 million to $51 million as total revenues grew ...more
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The case for investing in stocks
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
WE all have financial goals in life; whether it is to pay for our children's education, to be able to retire at a reasonable age, or simply to be able to buy the things we desire. Unfortunately, spending less than we earn is typically not enough for ...more
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Japan seeks non-nuclear energy
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Japan expects to compile an eagerly anticipated energy policy review by summer, as the Asian nation grapples with running its first annual trade deficit in over three decades. The country's new energy mix will revolve around lower dependence on nucl ...more
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Tokyo bets on a downtown skyscraper
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Tall and elegant, she looks down on Tokyo from 3,080 feet with a cylindrical body that is state-of-the-art. The Tokyo Sky Tree, in the final days of construction, is already the tallest building in Japan and the highest broadcasting tower in the wor ...more
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Romney would be among richest presidents
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
WASHINGTON DC, USA - Just how rich is Mitt Romney? Add up the wealth of the last eight presidents, from Richard Nixon to Barack Obama. Then double that number. Now you're in Romney territory. He would be among the richest presidents in American hist ...more
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Jamaica Broilers buys 1,700 acres for future plans
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Jamaica's largest poultry producer Jamaica Broilers, has purchased 1,700 acres of land in Spring Garden, St Catherine in order to facilitate a number of initiatives it has in the works. Speaking With Sunday Finance Jamaica Broilers' Vice President o ...more
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Is your money safe?
Sunday, January 29, 2012
PEOPLE who stash their savings in credit unions may be putting them in more danger than if they used a conventional bank, warns a top expert in financial risk. Credit unions often don’t have the systems or management skills to tell whether the ...more
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Food for thought
Sunday, January 29, 2012
SINCE it started in November, Food Xpress Catering has already outgrown its original operations in Spanish Town and will soon leave its current Kingston home for one that allows it to expand even more. "We normally just do events, collect the money ...more
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Sony boss warns of pirate attacks
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Fighting off marauding pirates is one of the main tasks facing the creative industries, Lisa Zbigniew, president of SonyBMG, told a Jamaica Stock Exchange conference last week. Increasing access to technology and the Internet has made it more import ...more
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Beware the dangers of Facebook
Sunday, January 29, 2012
More businesses are using social media to sell products and services, but many aren't considering the risks associated with the online marketing, a top auditor told a Jamaica Stock Exchange conference last week. By David Hall's reckoning, the new br ...more
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Poll Results: Most favour real estate as prized asset
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Which one of the following assets do you most favour to buy now and hold until the end of the year in Jamaica? Corporate bonds 3.6% Stocks 14.01% Gold 18.7% Real Estate 55.24% Government bonds 8.45% Total Votes: 1278 Click here to vote M ...more
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After “muddle through”, comes the “tangled mess”
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Twenty-eleven was a "muddle-through year" when nothing catastrophic happened and the general mood was defined by risk aversion, said Dr Carl Ross of Oppenheimer, an American investment boutique, in his address to the Jamaica Stock Exchange conference ...more
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No energy industry backing for the 'F word'
Sunday, January 29, 2012
NEW YORK, USA — A different kind of F-word is stirring a linguistic and political debate as controversial as what it defines. The word is "fracking" — as in hydraulic fracturing, a technique long used by the oil and gas industry to free ...more
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Activists and bloggers fear Twitter censorship
Sunday, January 29, 2012
CALIFORNIA, USA — BLOGGERS and activists from China, the Middle East and Latin America said Friday they were afraid that new Twitter policies could allow governments to censor messages, stifling free expression. Thursday's announcement that Tw ...more
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UK's new Shard adds drama to the London skyline
Sunday, January 29, 2012
LONDON, England — PASSENGERS stepping out of London Bridge tube station cannot help but crane their necks to gaze at the jagged tower under construction: The Shard is the tallest building in the European Union and looks like a slice of glass ba ...more
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Jamaican middle and upper classes don't have the entrepreneurial spirit — Ventura
Friday, January 27, 2012
THE poverty that blights much of the Caribbean economy has one big upside -- it has created a huge pool of people rich with entrepreneurial spirit, says a leading expert in the field. Conditions such as inequality and poverty "awaken entrepreneurial ...more
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JSE Junior Market needs to be ring fenced — St Bernard
Friday, January 27, 2012
SPOKESPERSON for the UK Diaspora Business, Denis St Bernard has declared that the Jamaica Stock Exchange's Junior Market is arguably not only Jamaica's most effective investment vehicle for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), to spur growth, develop ...more
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Taking Jamaicans to Hair Haven
Friday, January 27, 2012
With a doctorate in Marketing, a hair salon is the last place one would expect to find Veronica Reid, owner of Beautiful Earth Natural Hair Haven. "This is in my field of study, it's business. I don't need to employ somebody to do what I'm doing bec ...more
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J'can firm wins top business award
Friday, January 27, 2012
A Jamaican business intelligence solutions company, headed by Ian Moore, last week won a major business award from SAP AG, one of the world's leading business applications providers. Adjoined Business Solutions Limited (ABSL) received the Business O ...more
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Green RG to build alternative energy plant in Jamaica
Friday, January 27, 2012
Green RG Management, the US-based energy management company, has announced that it plans to build an assembly plant in Jamaica, the base of its intended regional launch. "We're expecting to partner with government and local industries to bring our t ...more
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Jamaica is a viable place for business
Friday, January 27, 2012
Addressing the Jamaica Stock Exchange Annual Investments and Capital Markets Conference 2012 held at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston on Wednesday, the CEO of mobile telephone service provider Digicel Jamaica Mark Linehan outlined why Jamaica is ...more
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Enter Auto Data
Friday, January 27, 2012
A new online motor vehicle history and valuation service was launched in Jamaica earlier this week and has already signed a deal with the largest car insurer in Jamaica, Advantage General Insurance Company. Auto Data Jamaica, a subsidiary of Auto Da ...more
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EXIM Bank signs new US$20-million loan deal with Petrocaribe Development Fund
Friday, January 27, 2012
EXIM Bank's sustained thrust to increase and strengthen its capital base is reaping dividends through a new US$20-million loan deal which the Bank signed Wednesday with the Petrocaribe Development Fund. This capital injection will greatly boost EXIM ...more
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Global economy in danger zone
Friday, January 27, 2012
THE world's economy is "deeply into the danger zone" because of risks from the eurozone, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said. The IMF predicts the global economy will grow by 3.25 per cent in 2012, down from an earlier forecast of 4 per c ...more
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Jamaica Observer start-up programme
Friday, January 27, 2012
Nominations are now open for candidates that can meet a few simple conditions. They must be properly registered, tax compliant and not more than three years old. And, of course, they must be generating sales. Businesses of every size and type, whethe ...more
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How to manage debt wisely
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Since the beginning of the year, we have been expanding on the elements of our 2012 Money Manifesto. It is possible to create the financial life that you desire by understanding and following the basic principles of money success. In today's column, ...more
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Wisynco’s Ocean Spray deal in doubt
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
UNCERTAINTY surrounds the 17-year-old distribution deal between Wisynco Group and Ocean Spray following last week’s announcement by multinational giant PepsiCo that it has acquired exclusive rights to manufacture and distribute the US cranberry ...more
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JP bids for quarter of Kingston Wharves
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
KINGSTON Wharves Limited (KW) is seeking to raise $1.8 billion from Jamaica Producers Group (JP), in order to further prepare for the huge ships expected once the Panama Canal expansion opens in 2014. The project will involve the demo ...more
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Phillips backs private-sector growth
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Jamaica is at a crossroads as a nation, said Dr. Peter Phillips, minister of Finance, Planning and the Public Service. The goal of the new administration is to "accelerate private-sector-led growth through increased investment and efficiency gains," ...more
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Hylton wants fairer trade treaties
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Jamaica is not getting its fair share of regional trade, said Anthony Hylton, the Minister for Industry, Investment and Commerce, in an unexpected criticism of the island's CARICOM partners yesterday. Actions must be taken to ensure that the existin ...more
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Gov't to start IMF negotiations next month
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
The Government will begin negotiating a new agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as early as next month, says Finance Minister Dr Peter Phillips. Negotiating a new IMF deal is a key priority of the Portia Simpson Miller-led administr ...more
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The employee from hell
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
"Tis strange, but true; for truth is always strange; Stranger than fiction." Lord Byron, Don Juan EVERY story in the boss-employee scenario has at least three sides: the employee's; the supervisor's and the truth. How many horror stories have you h ...more
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Looking for investors
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Since the election of the new government, almost every well-thinking Jamaican tries to make a contribution to the debate about how economic growth can be achieved in Jamaica, both immediately and in the long term. In this article, I dare to add my tw ...more
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Somewhere over the rainbow
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
HAVING had some success and seen one venture fail, Rajique Holmes said Ribbons and Bows, his gift basket company, is the start of a grand plan. A recent graduate of the University of the West Indies, Holmes has always wanted to start a business rath ...more
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US bulls not out of breath
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Everybody loves a winner but not everybody knows how to spot one. Though past results are no guarantee of future performance, the best-performing companies are worth examining because they've produced solid returns whilst swimming against powerful cu ...more
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Head start for sports marketing
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
University of Technology (UTech) appears to be on the verge of getting a US$150,000 ($13 million) grant to develop "sports business value chains" in Jamaica. The grant, approved two weeks ago by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), is aimed at ...more
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Dropped signal: Which way now for BlackBerry?
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
THE once mighty BlackBerry has suffered a rapid and disastrous fall from grace in North America, culminating with the resignation this week of co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis. But can their replacement, Thorsten Heins, restore Research in M ...more
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Testimony to begin in Stanford trial
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
TEXAS, USA - Financier R Allen Stanford built a vast fortune through his network of banks and other businesses in the US, Latin America the Caribbean, and he led a lifestyle befitting a billionaire business magnate. Once considered one of the US's w ...more
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Weed-based prescription drug looks for US OK
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
California, USA - A quarter-century after the US Food and Drug Administration approved the first prescription drugs based on the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, additional medicines derived from or inspired by the cannabis plant itself cou ...more
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Business leaders gloomy ahead of World forum
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
DAVOS, Switzerland - Business leaders are gloomy about prospects for the world economy, according to a major survey of international chief executives released on the eve of the Davos forum. A survey of 1,258 bosses by accountancy firm Pricewaterhous ...more
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Israel seeks to turn gas to gold
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
JERUSALEM, Israel - ISRAEL is planning a national investment fund that would put to work an anticipated natural gas bonanza, to fuel both an export-geared economy and provide a nest egg of US$10 billion ($862.5 billion) in under a decade for future g ...more
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Why pay for the brand?
Sunday, January 22, 2012
With no distinguishing features or telltale signs of activity, the industrial complex that houses No Brand Chemicals, and several other businesses, could easily go unnoticed on along Marcus Garvey Drive. The entrance is small, opening into a room wi ...more
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The IMF and interest rates
Sunday, January 22, 2012
TWO issues that will be most critical in the current economic environment are the IMF and what will happen to interest rates. This is against the background of the weakening fiscal and trade situation that Jamaica faces, as well as the weakening glob ...more
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Cash for a day or two
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Operating out of its owner's home, Henlon Brown Capital (HBC) started as a micro financing business in December 2010. "I'm coming from the financial industry where I used to work with credit unions. I would ask myself 'Why is it that I must have so ...more
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My refrigerator is not freezing properly
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Dear Claudienne I recently purchased a nine cubic ft Whirlpool refrigerator from Singer, Spanish Town for cash. However, it is not freezing properly. I complained to Singer and they sent a technician to check it, but it is still not freezing. It t ...more
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