President of the T&T Manufacturers’ Association (TTMA), Christopher Alcazar said manufacturers are not convinced that there is a turn around in T&T’s economy.
He added that while many manufacturers continue to push outward regionally, and are observing export growth, many are not seeing the signs of a turn around in their domestic market.
In his mid-year budget presentation, Finance Minister Colm Imbert said T&T was in a turn around as energy prices had improved along with other indicators.
In response to emailed questions, Alcazar said, “locally the market continues to be soft and sluggish. We are very pleased to hear the positive news from the Minister of Finance and congratulate him on the results, as well as congratulate him on taking important positive steps towards creating the optimum business environment in which we can thrive, therefore, driving exports and employment upwards.”
Referring to the nine months of import cover, Alcazar said this is good news, but he warned that T&T should not be comparing itself against countries which are worse off than T&T. He suggested that T&T should focus on what its goal should be as a developing nation, which wishes to improve and grow.
Alcazar renewed his call for a permanent solution to the VAT refund issue and also called for taxation to be competitive.
“However, we are yet to confirm that the model of property tax to be implemented will be one which will continue to support business growth and competitiveness, rather than use a framework which will chase business prospects by imposing taxes on plant and equipment investments.”