Region
The International Monetary Fund is reporting that the outlook
for Caribbean economies has improved with the global recovery. According to the IMF’s recently published World Economic Outlook, the Caribbean as a whole should grow an estimated 4.5 percent in 2011. The organisation cautioned, though, that much of that regional figure includes the “strong performance” of the Dominican Republic’s economy and post-earthquake rebuilding in Haiti. Without those countries, the regional growth rate is projected at 4.25 percent, the report stated.
St. Lucia
Fliers into St. Lucia now pay $35 more to use the country’s airports as a government-levied Airports Development Charge came into effect May 1. The fee, levied by the St. Lucia Air and Seaports Authority, will be levied upon all passengers departing St. Lucia, and those making connections in St. Lucia, according to a press release from the airline Liat.
Barbados
The United Kingdom will upgrade the Barbados government’s status on a tax transparency ranking after the country made improvements to its tax information exchange rules, officials said. According to a press release from Invest Barbados, the country’s economic development agency, the upgrade came after the country passed its 2011 Income Tax (Exchange of Information) Regulations, which provide for the “unilateral exchange of tax information” according to standards set by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.