06th March 2010
FirstCaribbean Daily Markets Report
Thursday, March 4th, 2010

Global Markets
• Claims for U.S. jobless benefits dropped last week from a three-month high, pointing to an improvement in the labor market that is slow to develop.
• Productivity of U.S. workers kept surging in the fourth quarter as companies squeezed more out of remaining employees to boost earnings. A measure of employee output per hour rose at a 6.9 percent annual rate, capping the biggest one-year gain since 2002.
• The number of contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly declined in January, showing the extension of a tax credit is sparking little interest.
• Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty will probably pare the government’s borrowing needs from a record high when the budget is presented today as policy makers wind down emergency stimulus and economic growth resumes.
• European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet phased out some of the emergency tools used to fight the financial crisis. The ECB will tighten the terms of its three-month market operations next month by returning to the pre-crisis practice of offering the funds at a variable rate.
• Greece’s pledge to deepen planned budget-deficit cuts failed to yield an offer of assistance from Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, as protesters in Athens seized the finance ministry building and blocked roads in the city center.
• The European Central Bank left its benchmark interest rate at a record low as policy makers weigh the risks of withdrawing emergency lending measures amid Greece’s fiscal crisis.
• The Bank of England kept its bond-purchase program on hold for a second month as policy makers assessed whether the 200 billion pounds ($302 billion) spent so far is enough to prevent a relapse in the economy.
• U.K. house prices dropped in February for the first time in eight months as more people put their homes on the market.
• Japanese businesses cut spending for an 11th quarter even as their earnings rebounded, signaling a revival in exports remains insufficient to prompt investment that would spur the recovery.
Caribbean Markets
Antigua & Barbuda: The Antigua and Barbuda Senate has approved the Antigua and Barbuda Sales Tax Amendment Regulations, which are now scheduled to come into effect on March 15. The measures are aimed at enhancing revenue, as the government seeks to put the country on a sustainable fiscal and economic path.
Barbados: Press reports that the Government of Barbados has agreed to importation of natural gas via pipeline from Trinidad and Tobago’s Eastern Caribbean Gas Pipeline Company Limited (ECGPC). Local press reports that Sue Springer, executive vice-president of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA), estimates that the tourism sector lost B$180 million last year. Springer indicated that Barbados is unlikely to recoup those losses even though the 2009 to 2010 winter season has shown an increase in arrivals.

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