The Belize Herald

Daily News from Belize

Finance

PACT with $1.15 million investment in Marine Reserve Network

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The award makes the 10th targeted investment by the Trust Fund

Belize City- The Protected Areas Conservation Trust (PACT) continues to be the premier donor to Belize’s National Protected Areas System. Today, PACT continued the roll out of its Conservation Investment Strategy with another investment, this time in multiple Marine Protected Areas under the management of the Belize Fisheries Department. A brief signing ceremony was held to award the $1.15 Million Dollar conservation investment.

This investment is expected to support the Fisheries Department in improving management effectiveness of five Marine Reserves across the Belize Barrier Reef System. Specifically, it will result in improved infrastructure and management presence at the Bacalar Chico Marine Reserve, Caye Caulker Marine Reserve, South Water Caye Marine Reserve, Sapodilla Cayes Marine Reserve and Glovers Reef Marine Reserve.

The award marks the tenth targeted investment award made by PACT towards improved management of the Belize National Protected Areas System (BNPAS) since December 2018. Cumulatively, these investments, made in accordance with PACT’s 2018-2021 Conservation Investment Strategy, will see PACT invest up to a staggering $9.5 Million Dollars in 19 protected areas across the BNPAS over the next three years. Additionally, these investments stand to attract at minimum an additional $12 Million Dollars in leveraged resources from other donors, ballooning the total investment in these sites to over $21 Million Dollars.

Diesel Price Moves Up Before Expected Fuel Price Decreases

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Puma Gas Station Belmopan
The Government of Belize says they expect fuel prices to decrease over coming weeks. Photo: Harald Linkels

Belmopan- The Ministry of Finance says that they hope that fuel prices will soon move lower, after a recent hike in the price of Diesel Fuel. The price of Diesel Oil last week went from from $10.63 to $10.97 per US Gallon in Belize City. The pump prices for diesel oil in the districts are slightly higher than that, due to internal freight charges.

The Ministry also said there would be no changes in the pump prices of gasoline and kerosene.

According to the Ministry, the increase in the price of Diesel is due to a lagged effect on domestic prices from the recent spike in the world oil prices.

In recent days however, world oil prices have begun to trend downwards, and the Ministry stated they are certain that the next shipment of fuel products, which is due toward the end of next week, will result in markedly lower prices at the pump.

The Government of Belize (GOB) continues to work with PUMA and with all local suppliers, wholesalers and retailers, to ensure that in future any potential price increases are kept to a bare minimum, and that any world oil price decreases are passed through to the local market as quickly as possible.

Overall Government deficit narrows somewhat

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deficit photo forbes
According to the Monthly Economic highlights report from the Central Bank of Belize, the deficit has narrowed somewhat in the first 10 months of the fiscal year. Photo: Forbes.com

Belize City- According to the Monthly Economic highlights report from the Central Bank of Belize, during the first 10 months (April to January) of the 2017/2018 fiscal year, Central Government’s revenues rose by 1.1% to $891.7mn, while expenditure fell by 2.2% to $936.3mn.

Consequently, the primary balance swung from a deficit of 0.01% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to a surplus of 0.9% of GDP, while the overall deficit narrowed from 2.2% of GDP to 1.2% of GDP, when compared to the same period of the previous fiscal year.

The financing gap was funded mainly from domestic sources.

While the narrowing of the deficit sounds like good news, total public-sector debt rose by 0.5% to $3,557.1 million and stood at 92.5% of GDP at the end of February.

Central Government’s domestic debt rose by 2.1% to $1,047.6 million, while the public sector external debt dipped by 0.1% to $2,509.6 million.

International Airfare Prices Drives Transportation Costs Down

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Delta Airlines BZE
International airfare prices to and from Belize are sharply down. Photo: Harald Linkels

Belmopan- The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the month of February 2018 shows a positive trend, with prices in the country easing half a percent overall.

The ‘Transport’ category especially, registed a 4.7% decrease in February 2018, according to figures released by the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB).

SIB notes that prices in this category had been steadily rising since August of 2016 and that the decline in February 2018 compared to February 2017, was the first decline in a long time.

SIB notes that although rising fuel prices have been a major contributor to the upward trend in ‘Transport’ prices during recent months, for the month of February 2018 this increase was offset by a sharp decline in international airfare prices.

Over the last year, many international carriers have chosen to add Belize to their route network, driving prices for tickets to and from Belize considerably down from what they used to be a few years ago. New additions to PGIA are Southwest Airlines, Air Canada and Westjet Airlines, also from Canada.

Fuel prices rose again
The news was not all good in the transport sector. Within the ‘Fuel and Lubricants’ subcategory, the price per gallon of Premium gasoline rose 9.4 percent from $10.48 in February 2017 to $11.46 in February 2018, while Regular gasoline rose 5.9 percent from $9.71 to $10.29, and the price per gallon of Diesel was up 11.1 percent from $9.11 to $10.12.

The rise in fuel costs impacts more people in Belize than the decline in airfare does, but overall, the decrease in airfare costs has had a positive impact on transportation costs for the country.

The category Food & Alcoholic Beverages also showed a slight decrease in February 2018, compared to the previous year, of -0.4%. Prices within the ‘Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuels’ category rose by 0.5 percent for the month of February 2018.

A marginal increase of 0.2 percent for prices within ‘All Other Categories Of Goods And Services’ was attributed almost entirely to higher prices for ‘Alcoholic Beverages’. This reflected a 7.1 percent rise in the average price of beer as a result of last year’s increase in excise tax