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Monday, March 23, 2026
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‘No downturn signs’: Electric auto dealer targets 10% growth BY NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Schooner Bay owners hail ‘total moral, ethical victory’ By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Supreme Court quashes $261,500 fines levied by developer
THE developer behind Abaco’s Schooner Bay community has seen its bid to impose $261,500 in “punitive” fines on a group of homeowners, and bar them from selling their properties, totally quashed by the Supreme Court. Justice Darron Ellis, in a March 20, 2026, verdict ruled that the project - once held-up as a sustainable development model that the whole Bahamas should emulate - cannot
And removes bar blocking homeowners from selling properties Developer bid to recover legal fees ‘circumvented’ prior ruling use Schooner Bay’s master declaration, which governs how the community operates, in the way it has to levy sanctions in an effort to recover legal fees stemming from a previous legal
battle with the same homeowner group. As a result, he declared the fines “invalid, unlawful and unenforceable” while ruling that Schooner Bay Ventures, the developer, is
“not entitled” to use the community’s master declaration in the manner it sought to impose such penalties or assessments against the homeowner group and their properties in the south Abaco development. And Justice Ellis also ordered that the developer, by this Friday, provide the homeowner claimants with the signed “certificates” they require to be able to sell their properties. Schooner Bay Ventures had “refused” to issue these until the homeowners paid their respective fines, and thus reimbursed its legal costs, which has prevented - and, in one case, appears to have cost - the claimants a potential sale of their property within the community.
COMMUNITY - See Page B7
A BAHAMIAN electric vehicle dealer is “targeting at least another 10 percent sales increase” for 2026 despite fears the new auto market could suffer “a bloodbath” by “hitting saturation point” as early as the second half, adding: “We are not seeing any signs of a downturn.” Pia Farmer, partner in Easy Car Sales, told Tribune Business that electric vehicle sales will likely receive a further boost due to the Middle East conflict’s impact on global oil prices making it even more expensive to drive gasoline-powered autos - at least in the short-term. And, with her dealership’s sales increasing by 10-15 percent year-overyear for 2025, she voiced optimism about a repeat performance this year despite the global uncertainties, and asserted: “We’re not going to be fearful about the future.” Speaking after Fred Albury, principal at the Auto Mall, which is the authorised distributor for the Toyota, Hyundai and BMW brands, last week
warned that “the market cannot continue to absorb the amount of new vehicles coming in”, Ms Farmer acknowledged to this newspaper that auto sales move in “cycles” and Bahamian auto dealers have enjoyed several strong-performing years. However, she argued that the fuel and service cost savings drivers will enjoy from switching to electric vehicles is likely to “sustain” her and other dealers amid the global economic turbulence, and called for The Bahamas to further enhance its energy independence through going electric with public transportation such as jitneys and taxis. “We’re targeting at least another 10 percent increase over last year,” Ms Farmer told Tribune Business of Easy Car Sales’ 2026 sales goals. “We’re happy to see the expansion of electric vehicles because a lot of legacy gas car dealers are entering the electric vehicle market and that benefits all of us. “Last year we ended selling about 10-15 percent more than the year before, and we are pushing for
SALES - See Page B6
Bahamas’ import switch in minimal cost of living gain BY NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net AN INTERNATIONAL Monetary Fund (IMF) research paper has exposed just how tough The Bahamas’ cost of living crisis is to crack by calculating that a 2-5 percent cut in this nation’s import bill will only lower consumer prices “by up to 1.5 percent”. The paper, by Julien Acalin, argued that Bahamians will enjoy “non-trivial” gains by switching just 2-3 percent of imports from the US to lower-cost supplier countries such as China, Canada and Japan. But, while this would slash import costs by between 2-5
percent, the IMF paper signalled that the reduction in consumer prices at the store will be relatively minimal and conceded that “large uncertainty” surrounds the peak 1.5 percent estimate. It added that multiple domestic factors on the ground in The Bahamas will determine the level of savings ultimately realised by its people from greater import diversification, including the level of competition in the wholesale and retail sectors. The IMF paper added that “oligopolistic” market structures, where there are relatively few competitors within a particular sector, will likely
A BAHAMIAN tour operator is hoping for a late winter season upturn with bookings down 45 percent year-over-year as the peak Easter holiday weekend approaches. Astra Charlton, director of business development for My Own Water Sports, told Tribune Business that the company’s booking pace, too, is off by around 35 percent compared to the same period in 2025, which she attributed to economic
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Tour operator’s Easter uptick hope with bookings off 45% BY ANNELIA NIXON Tribune Business Reporter anixon@tribunemedia.net
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challenges and uncertainty in the US that have caused visitors to cut back on tour and excursion spending. Cautiously optimistic that Spring Break, as well as the Easter holiday weekend, will generate increased visitor numbers and spending, Ms Charlton said: “Our current booking pace as of now is about 35 percent down year-over-year as compared to last year's performance. “But as we approach the Easter peak, I think our bookings so far reflect a decline of over 45 percent compared to the same point
VOLUMES - See Page B12
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