Economist. We need and we will devalue our currency in order to be competitive. All industrialized countries have devalued their currency to compensate for the strength of the US economy compared to theirs. Look at the Euro (since January it has been devalued from $1.20 to $1.06 or 16%) and look at the Canadian dollar (since January it has been devalued from $0.86 to $0.64 or 14%). These are just two examples. You should also look at Brazil, China, Russia, Norway and South Africa as well. Every developed country has devalued except the Bahamas.

With our growing debt, high unemployment, lack of foreign investment, crime, low education level etc. etc. a devaluation will be a big boost to our economy. I argue that we need to devalue our currency from $1.00 too $0.80 or 20%. The devaluation needs to be sudden and without warning just like they did in China so that people don't become afraid and try to take their money out of the banks, Bahamian stocks and bonds.

Once the devaluation is done labour will become cheaper. The increased minimum wage, national insurance rates, business license fees and VAT is making labour too expensive for foreign businesses. Foreigners will make more money in their hotels and the expanded economy will trickle down to the poor.

Take a look at pages 52 and 53 of the PLP Manifesto for 2012 (below). Their visionary identification of our current financial problems and the steps they are taking to correct the issues are spot on. With VAT, recapitalization of BoB, Bamsi etc. we are on the correct course. Steady as she goes.

Sheeprunner12, have you talked with the number boys? I would have thought they had money to lend. Besides what do you need a loan for? Don't you have a government job, a low income house through BoB where you don't have to pay the mortgage, a third hand broke down car imported on the island and don't your children go to a fully paid government school (Baha Mar will open to give all of our kids jobs very soon according to Christie) and free national health care will be here shortly so we will not have to pay for medical insurance. If I were you I wouldn't get a loan from these foreigners.

PLP Vision 2030 - Help and Hope are here today!

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2015…

6. Many people like myself will stay with BTC and not get quadruple play. When cable goes off I don't get TV, internet and phone service. But if I go to Cable cell phone service will be cuts as well. OMG, how will I exist?

Cable Bahamas is a great Bahamian success story but shareholders need to watch the company and hold the directors accountable so they don't lose money like in BoB and City Meat by squandering shareholder funds with pie in the sky investments and partnerships. There is no need for them to expand into the US market or partner with the government. You don't great Bahamian companies like Commonwealth Bank doing this nonsense.

Note 1. Achilles, a invulnerable mythical hero who led the Greeks to victory in the Trojan wars but was killed by a small arrow to his heel. An Achilles heel is a weakness in spite of overall strength, which can actually or potentially lead to downfall.

I think Cable's partnership with the Government will be their Achilles Heel (see Note 1 below on Achilles) for the following reasons:

1. The government will own 51% of the cell company. Does anyone know of any public/private partnership that has made a profit? Bob, btc, bec (scheduled for failure), Bamsi, Freeport, Baha Mar, CoB, Water and Sewerage and remember the 10 anchor projects of the first PLP government - all have failed. What makes Cable believe it can buck the trend. The only one that works is the Port which has a 20 year monopoly on importing goods to the Bahamas and is ripping off Bahamians with high shipping costs.

The finalization of Cable government partnership will take much longer than anticipated. This is not unusual. It will increase the interest payable bleed. There is also the potential that the deal will fail as Christie takes forever to make a decision.

2. The Finance VP is blaming the Preference share issue for the loss but that doesn't explain why operating profit (before dividends and interest) were cut in half falling from $5.6m to $2.9m. Why? Larger than anticipated US capital expenditures in a no growth/highly competitive US market? What makes Cable believe that it is invincible and can compete against cable giants like Time Warner, Comcast, Verizon and AT&T on their home turf?

3. Cable will need to finance the entire cell service build out while only pocketing 49% of the profits. Where will the government get financing from for its 51% of the infrastructure build out? The Bahamas is already $6.4 billion in debt and, lol, BTC's towers are so small they can't even accommodate Cable's transmitters.

4. Long term debt and preference share issuance has increased 25% to a crushing 1/3 of a billion dollars. How is this sustainable?

5. Like the telephone, cell phone service is next in line for technological disruption. Google and Facebook are giving away wireless data service in parts of India and Africa as the data collection is more valuable than cell phone service. We have seen the losses What'sApp phone service (owned by Facebook) has caused to BTC. Once What'sApp fully disconnects from its tether to a cell phone number it will make cell phones obsolete. What'sApp now has 900 million active users which makes it the largest phone company in the globe connecting 1 in 7 people on earth. Give it 5 years.

6. Many people like myself will stay with BTC and not get quadruple play. When cable goes off I don't get TV, internet and phone service. But if I go to Cable cell phone service I will be cut off from the world. OMG, how will I exist?

Dis look like Baha Mar all over again.

Y'all ain learn anything yet?

We need to stop listening to these international credit rating agencies. The government of the Bahamas is taking care of its citizens. The reason why private individuals are borrowing less is because the government, through its many positive projects, is borrowing more!

The government is on target to collect $300 million per annum from the Bahamian people through VAT. This money will be put to good use with Bamsi, btc, bec, cob, BoB, Carnival, Baha Mar concessions (non-payment of $30 million BEC bill yet the lights are still ablaze every night) etc.

Also the total national debt over the last 18 months has increased from $5.5 to $6.3 billion and is rapidly approaching 100% of GDP. These funds are being used to pay salaries and major projects of the government. Also many countries have large national debts such as Jamaica, Venezuela, Cuba, Barbados, Grenada, Puerto Rico, Detriot etc. and they are still surviving.

Now, thanks to our government, we don't need to borrow money in US dollars abroad which will increase our external debt. Now the government in borrowing almost monthly through the issuance of short term Treasury bills and notes. These are an excellent investment for Bahamian savers because instead of giving our money to the foreign banks we can give it to the government who will put it to good use to pay salaries of our hard working civil servants.

Some people are unduly concerned about our reduced US$ foreign reserves (which keeps the Bahamian dollar on par with the strong US dollar) due to the lack of big foreign investment projects. This will shortly turn around because we will be bringing in more foreigners to run our country for us - first BEC will be run by foreigners, then Baha Mar will get new foreigners and most positively we are bringing in foreigners to run our national health care system. Some people are also arguing that we need to bring in foreign lawyers and police to run our legal systems for us. This is all very positive.

All the opposition and rich Bahamians seem to be doing is complaining on Facebook about how bad things are. But the current government is taking steps to make things even better in the Bahamas!

I have no idea what S&P is complaining about. We don't need to borrow from foreigners who have recently put us on credit watch negative for further downgrades to junk status. We can now borrow locally from Bahamians in Bahamian Dollars (our own currency which is on par with the appreciating US Dollar). These funds borrowed from Bahamians can now be used to help out Bank of the Bahamas, Bamsi, COB, the Post Office, the Driver's License Department in Abaco etc.

The national debt has risen from $5.5 billion, 18 months ago to $6.4 billion today. But look at all of the major accomplishments of our government. Well done! Keep up the good work!

http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2015…

Mr. Turnquest

If and when the FNM become the government you will need to shut your mouth because RBC are the main bankers and primary lenders to the Government of the Bahamas.

We have sold our souls to them so they feel entitled to rape thousands of Bahamian with outrageous bank charges. Lol...besides Bahamians don't complain, no one is reading the Tribune blogs, you can do whatever you like with them.

In the last 18 months our national debt has increased from $5.5b to $6.3b (70% GDP). The government will need the full corporation of RBC when every last Bahamian citizen wakes up one morning to find their money worth 0.70US$. Please don't expect any warning.

Majority rule? What a joke.

Thanks Lionfish

I just read your earlier post which reflects precisely what occurred to thousands of RBC current account clients in the Bahamas. But after banking at RBC for 40 years and having owned their Canadian stock which trades on the Toronto stock exchange I was determined to not allow them to run me out of this globally reputable institution because no one could be bothered to act ethically or efficiently. You should have stayed with RBC and fought the bad customer service and their senior management which need to be fired. If we as Bahamian keep running we will soon be driven into the sea by foreigners and our government. When the sun goes down ya better be locked up in ya house, the middle class is now endangered.

Canadians have joined the Chinese and other foreign investors to rape Bahamians - facilitated by Bahamian lawyers and politicians. Baha Mar closed down, Airport fees are so high that Jet Blues has expressed concern to our government that their routs to Ft Lauderdale. Cable and Wireless say they are going to layoff Bahamians - can't wait for Cable Bahamas cell phone service so I can drop my BTC cell phone, PowerCorp - a third rate US corporation taking over BEC - what a joke.