business@tribunemedia.net
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2025
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No tariff ‘end of world’ as auto sales up 12% By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net NEW car sales exceeded 2024’s “banner year” by 12 percent during the first two months of 2025, with one Bahamian auto dealer yesterday asserting that current global uncertainty “won’t become the end of the world”. Ben Albury, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association’s (BMDA) president, told Tribune Business there was too much at stake for the US and other nations
MARK A TURNQUEST
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PETER GOUDIE
Trump dashes ‘year of stability’ hopes for local small business By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net BAHAMIAN small business expectations that 2025 would be “a year of stability” have been dashed by the global economic turmoil unleashed by Donald Trump, a consultant to the sector revealed yesterday. Mark A Turnquest, founder of the 242 Small Business Association and Resource Centre, told Tribune Business that many merchants and entrepreneurs fear the “tremendous” 30-40 percent reduction in electricity costs enjoyed during the year’s first two months will now be outweighed by the uncertainty and loss of confidence caused by the US president’s trade and tariff policies. While agreeing it is “a no brainer” that The Bahamas will benefit by being exempted from the $1 per port call fee that the US had planned to levy on Chinese-made ships, he added
that its imposition would have merely provoked further price hikes for local consumers and a loss of sales, plus reduced profits, for merchants and vendors. Relieved that one potential “tremendous burden” has been eliminated, Mr Turnquest told this newspaper: “We were just slowly getting over the shipping cost increases and inflation from COVID. We thought that, before Trump came into power in January, this would be a year of stability. “We really thought this was going to be a year of stability because our electricity bills went down. We were really optimistic this would be a year of stability. We don’t know what will happen in the summer, but we’ve seen a tremendous reduction in electricity costs year-over-year. It’s almost a 30-40 percent fall. That was in January and February compared to January and February of last year.
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for them not to resolve their current trade-related disputes as Donald Trump last night confirmed tariffs on Chinese imports will “come down substantially, but it won’t be zero”. Voicing optimism that “a lot of this stuff is going to work its way out”, with 18 nations yesterday said to have offered trade agreement proposals to the US, he added that Bahamian auto dealers still have time to “see this play out” with domestic market forces presently causing them more concern.
BEN ALBURY Mr Albury, who is also Bahamas Bus and Truck’s general manager, told this newspaper that the main issue that BMDA members are focused on is “market saturation” given that the industry has enjoyed “a good run” for the past several years since emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic. During this time, many persons and companies wanting to acquire
IMF raises Bahamas growth forecast amid Trump turmoil By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE Bahamas was yesterday urged to “take with a grain of salt” the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) modest upward revisions to this nation’s projected economic growth for 2025 and 2026. Gowon Bowe, Fidelity Bank (Bahamas) chief executive, told Tribune Business that this nation should not let its guard down over the Fund’s improved forecasts given the “real” threats poised to “come down the pipeline” from Donald Trump’s unpredictable tariff policy and the price increases this will cause. He spoke out after the Fund, in unveiling its latest World Economic Outlook, actually increased its economic growth predictions for The Bahamas this year and next while, at the same time, slashing those for every major developed economy including the US.
Bahamian gross domestic product (GDP) growth was revised upwards by ten basis points, or 0.1 percentage points, for 2025 and 2026 when compared to both the IMF’s October 2024 World Economic Outlook and its Article IV report on this country that was released in January this year. The Bahamas’ 2025 GDP growth has been revised upwards to 1.8 percent for 2025, as opposed to the previous 1.7 percent estimate, while that for 2026 has also been raised by the same margin - from 1.6 percent to 1.7 percent. The IMF provided no rationale or explanation for The Bahamas’ shift, which came as it warned of a “major negative shock” unleashed into the global economy from Mr Trump’s trade policies. While the US president has suspended imposition of these so-called “reciprocal” tariffs on most countries, with the exception of China, for a 90-day period through to early July, the ongoing
Contractor awarded $150k over Dorian rebuild dispute By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net A BAHAMIAN contractor has been awarded $150,000 after the Supreme Court ruled that an expatriate homeowner breached the agreement for him to rebuild her Dorian-devastated Hope Town house. Justice Constance Delancy, in an April 10, 2025, verdict found in
favour of James Baillou, trading as Baillou Construction II, over the $400,000 contract to rebuild Cliona Bacon’s Hope Town property, ‘By The Steps’. Despite finding both sides to be “generally truthful” with the evidence they gave, the judge said she “preferred” that given by the contractor and awarded him the unpaid $150,000 balance plus interest.
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new vehicles have now done so, and taken on the required debt financing to close the purchases. As a result, given the relatively small size of the Bahamian market, Mr Albury said “there’s only so many vehicles we can sell”, and dealers are watching closely in anticipation of having to reduce new auto orders if demand slackens. For now, the BMDA president said interest and floor traffic in dealer showrooms “remains strong”, with Mr Trump’s tariffs not impacting vehicle prices because most autos are imported to The Bahamas directly from Japan, China and other markets without having to touch the US and its new border levies. Apart from China, most of the planned US tariffs have been paused for 90 days and held at a ‘baseline’ 10 percent. “I haven’t had any dealer express any concerns to me,” Mr
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INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND (IMF) HEADQUARTERS
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GOWON BOWE uncertainty continues to damage business, consumer and investor confidence. While stocks recovered modestly yesterday, trillions of dollars in value has been wiped However, Justice Delancy rejected Mr Baillou’s claim for defamation over allegations that Ms Bacon “intentionally and falsely accused” himself and his workers “of dishonesty in misappropriating building materials” purchased for use in reconstructing her home and using them on other work sites. Setting out the dispute’s origins, the judge noted that both parties signed a document, entitled ‘Estimated costs to make repairs to Cliona Bacon’s house’ on April 7, 2021. The estimated price, including both materials
off global stock markets, while the US dollar is at a near three-year low. Given The Bahamas’ deep-rooted reliance on the US for the bulk of its tourists, goods imports and other long-standing commercial ties, as well as this nation’s well-known vulnerability to external shocks from both recessions and climate change, most observers would have forecast a downward - rather than upward revision - by the IMF to this nation’s GDP growth forecasts given all the negative forces in play.
SEE PAGE B4 and labour, was $400,000 and divided into four stage payments of various sums between $50,000 to $150,000. Some $300,000 was to cover labour costs, with the balance going on materials. No completion date was specified, and Ms Bacon terminated their agreement just over five months’ later on September 18, 2021, because “she was dissatisfied with the quality of the claimant’s [Mr Baillou’s] workmanship and the pace of construction”. At that time, the contractor had received the first
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Starlink’s Out Island surge may put Cable, BTC ‘out of business’ By FAY SIMMONS Tribune Business Reporter jsimmons@tribunemedia.net A FAMILY Island installer has warned that the likes of Cable Bahamas and the Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) may find themselves “out of business” due to a “major” surge in demand for Starlink. Erick Darling, owner of HBS Systems, said his company is seeing a rapid
increase in demand for Starlink’s satellite Internet installations, especially among Family Island residents who have grown tired of poor service from traditional telecommunications and Internet Service Providers (ISPs). Speaking to Tribune Business, Mr Darling warned that Cable Bahamas and BTC might find themselves “out of business” in the provision of Internet services on several Family Islands as residents
are exploring the satellite rival due to frequent connectivity issues. “The demand has been so huge that we can’t even handle it. Especially on the Out Islands like Eleuthera, Acklins, the Internet is horrible, so people have been going crazy for Starlink. We do at least one new Starlink instillation every day,” said Mr Darling. “Cable Bahamas and BTC might find themselves out of business on some
Family Islands, based on the amount of persons who are booking, inquiring and installing. I mean they are just dropping the two of them like water.” Mr Darling said the major benefit of satellite internet service in The Bahamas is that it provides all residents with a reliable alternative so they no longer have to accept poor service. He explained that, as the market grows, new players such as Amazon’s
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