Since our inaugural publication of the Caribbean Energy Price Index in January, so much has happened! Driven mainly by the Israeli-US attack on Iran and closure of the Strait of Hormuz, oil prices (WTI) almost doubled from roughly USD67.02 per barrel on February 27,...
Cayman’s population has doubled in 22 years and is closing in on 100,000. Who is that growth really for, who is paying for it, and who gets to decide what happens next? This report follows the money from work permits to Government revenue to construction, and then...
Regarding the Venezuela / US situation, we are missing the point completely - it is not about whether the US is right or wrong, and whether the Chávez / Maduro regime was criminal or not. Two things can be true at the same time. And there is much more going on here...
The development model we have pursued in the Caribbean has arguably failed to create equitable, stable, prosperous and safe societies. Many of us were doing reasonably well for a few decades post-independence, but now we have largely stagnated. We see this manifested...
What if the cruise berthing debate could be settled by examining the actual data, free from agendas, popular beliefs, and emotion? Almost all Caribbean countries have seen cruise arrivals decline. And despite tendering its cruise passengers, Cayman already outperforms...
WHY are we here? Because the People’s Partnership from 2014-2015 and then the PNM since, have subsidized the sale of USD by selling it at a lower price than they could, thereby creating more demand for USD, and controlling the supply of foreign exchange (FX) to...
We estimate that the total gross impact of Seven Mile Beach (SMB) on the Cayman Islands economy approaches USD1 billion annually. Properties on SMB are valued at around USD6 billion - roughly USD4.9 billion on the North and USD1.2 billion on the South. The cost of...
Marla Dukharan was invited, as an eminent Caribbean Economist and Advisor, to present the 4th Distinguished Owen S. Arthur Memorial Lecture, and share her reflection on the topic “Tax Justice for the Caribbean?". Please find the speaking notes below.
Currently, only 16/36 or just 44% of the Caribbean are sovereign / independent states, meaning that the Caribbean is still mostly, in terms of number of territories, a colonized region…
Having spent most of 2023 studying the Cayman Islands economy and actively engaging with Caymanians and policymakers, I feel compelled to share my analysis and insights. I am grateful that Cayman has a robust statistical framework thanks to the ESO, more so than many...