Puerto Rico and the Caribbean
www.theweeklyjournal.com
>Josian Bruno Gómez
Wednesday, August 14-20, 2019 - // no. 016
PUERTO RICO’S THIRD GOVERNOR IN A WEEK—FOR NOW P10 TREASURY’S COFFERS GET BIG PRIVATESECTOR BOOST P12 DMO SETS EYES ON SPORTS TOURISM INDUSTRY P16
THE ISLAND’S ECONOMY
>Josian E. Bruno Gomez
Small and Medium Scale Businesses make up 92 percent of all retail businesses and account for 39 to 44 percent of sales in the retail sector
O Cynthia López Cabán
OCEAN PARK ON ALERT TO FIGHT WORSENING BEACH EROSION P20
clopez@wjournal.com
@cynthia_lope
n a stretch of road between the Condado and Isla Verde touristy neighborhoods of San Juan, Loíza Street overflows with restaurants, bars, coffee shops, boutiques, thrift and convenience stores. A foodie and shopper’s paradise, this string of retail stores or corridor of commerce is part of the vibrant small to medium enterprise (SME) force that has become the backbone of the island’s economy.
In Puerto Rico, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) make up 92 percent of all retail businesses. They account for 39 to 44 percent of sales in the retail sector, according to the Trade and Export Company. Data provided by the agency also revealed that during the month of May sales in SMEs amounted to $1,148 billion, a slight decrease when compared to the same period last year. At the end of 2018, 41,458 SMEs (companies with 50 or fewer employees that filed payroll reports) were scattered across the island, from a universe of GO TO PAGE 4
>Gabriel López Albarrán
THE BACKBONE OF