Nov 2013 Financial News

Howai predicts healthy growth

Nov 11, 2013

Finance Minister Larry Howai is predicting healthy growth for the local economy next year that will rival the positives experienced over the past four quarters. He says T&T remains attractive for new investment, citing the entry of Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB) into this country’s financial services sector, through its 100 per cent acquisition of Inter-Commercial Bank (IBL).

Speaking at a reception hosted by JMMB at the Hyatt Regency Trinidad on Saturday, to welcome IBL as a wholly-owned subsidiary, Howai said as maintenance work at Petrotrin’s refinery comes to an end, production will return to full capacity to generate added wealth for the Treasury. But these new causes for optimism, Howai said, did not mean that the Government was putting the brakes on strengthening the financial services sector.

According to the minister, the State is doing everything to promote overall growth in the economy, but that must run parallel to the introduction of enhanced regulation to prevent a repeat of the near collapse of Hindu Credit Union and Clico. “And certainly, next year, as some of the problems we faced in the energy sector over past two years—as all the maintenance work gets behind us—we’re really looking forward to seeing an acceleration of that growth prospect,” he said.

“I think JMMB has come into T&T at the right time. They have emphasised the right kind of values, they stated the right kind of vision to be able to provide to right kind of services that their customers need, while at the time, doing so in a way that creates value and that represents the need to have a strong stable institution, particularly in the financial services sector. As we go forward, the Government of T&T will seek to enhance the regulatory framework.

“Over the past year, we have moved T&T from the grey list. We introduced the AML/CFL legislation to strengthen that, so that we have the right kind of framework for operating in T&T.

“We have introduced the new Securities Industry Act and that will certainly strengthen the securities industry regulation and the entire environment for the securities industry in T&T. We have laid the Insurance Bill. It has to be relaid because Parliament was prorogued, but that will happen within the next week or two. We will have a new Insurance Act in place within the next two months and we are looking to bring the credit union sector under better regulation over the coming months.

“All of that, and new Occupation and Pension Bill, as we try to strengthen the overall framework for pension management in T&T. We are quickly bringing these things to resolution over the next few months. “So I am looking forward very positively to next year, as the economy continues to accelerate and as the regulatory process gets in place in the right way,” Howai said.


Source:
Sean Nero
Trinidad Guardian
Monday November 11, 2013

http://guardian.co.tt/news/2013-11-11/howai-predicts-healthy-growth