Black Immigrant Daily News

Autopistas de Puerto Rico, empresa que tiene a su cargo la administración del puente Teodoro Moscoso, anunció hoy, jueves, el cierre temporero del puente, en ambas direcciones, este sábado, 10 de septiembre, comenzando desde las 6:00 de la mañana hasta las 6:00 de la tarde, debido a la filmación de una producción audiovisual.

Se exhorta a los conductores a tomar vías alternas como la PR-26 para rutas entre San Juan y Carolina, y el Ramal 8 si conduce entre Río Piedras y Carolina.

Se exhorta a los conductores a estar atentos a los mensajes variables ubicados antes de las entradas al puente.

El Puente Teodoro Moscoso es una infraestructura que conecta San Juan con Isla Verde desde 1994.

Nota relacionada: Anuncian cierre temporero del puente Teodoro Moscoso

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Black Immigrant Daily News

El alcalde de Toa Alta, Clemente “Chito” Agosto, anunció que a partir de mañana, viernes 9 de septiembre, y durante todos los viernes del mes, habrá un centro fijo, en el Coliseo Lauro Dávila, de pruebas para detectar el coronavirus.

“Es importante mantenerse cuidando ante los casos de COVID-19 que siguen reportándose en el país. Exhortamos a los ciudadanos a realizarse las pruebas para detectar el virus y así cortar las cadenas de contagio”, expresó el primer ejecutivo municipal.

Las pruebas se realizarán los viernes 9,16, 26 y 30 de septiembre, desde las 8:00 a.m. hasta las 12:00 p.m. mientras duren. Asimismo, se informó que el servicio estará disponible para residentes en Toa Alta y pueblos limítrofes. 

La iniciativa es posible gracias a una colaboración del programa SAMYR (Servicios de Ayuda, Monitoreo y Rastreo de COVID-19) y el Departamento de Salud, según el comunicado.

Esta mañana, Salud reportó nueve muertes por COVID-19, por lo que la cifra se ubica en 5,016 desde que llegó la enfermedad a la isla en marzo de 2020. Además, registraron 294 personas hospitalizadas

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Black Immigrant Daily News

The European Central Bank made its largest-ever interest rate increase Thursday, following the US Federal Reserve and other central banks in a global stampede of rapid rate hikes meant to snuff out record inflation that is squeezing consumers and pushing Europe toward recession.

The bank’s 25-member governing council raised its key benchmarks by an unprecedented three-quarters of a percentage point for the 19 countries that use the euro currency. The ECB usually moves rates by a quarter-point and had not raised its key bank lending rate by three-quarters of a point since the euro’s launch in 1999.

Bank President Christine Lagarde said the ECB will keep hiking rates “over the next several meetings” because “inflation remains far too high and is likely to stay above our target for an extended period.” She said energy prices will stay “extraordinarily high.”

While Lagarde stopped short of predicting a recession later this year, which many economists expect, she told reporters that “recent data point to a substantial slowdown in euro-area economic growth, with the economy expected to stagnate later in the year and in the first quarter of 2023.”

The bank’s jumbo increase is aimed at raising the cost of borrowing for consumers, governments and businesses, which in theory slows spending and investment and cools off soaring consumer prices by reducing the demand for goods.

Analysts say it’s also aimed at bolstering the bank’s credibility after it underestimated how long and how severe this outbreak of inflation would be. After reaching a record 9.1% in August, inflation may rise into double digits in coming months, economists say.

The war in Ukraine has fueled inflation in Europe, with Russia sharply reducing supplies of cheap natural gas used to heat homes, generate electricity and run factories. That has driven up gas prices by 10 times or more.

European officials decry the cutbacks as blackmail aimed at pressuring and dividing the European Union over its support for Ukraine. Russia has blamed technical problems and threatened this week to cut off energy supplies completely if the West institutes planned price caps on Moscow’s natural gas and oil.

Some economists say the ECB’s interest rate hikes, including a half-point hike at its last meeting in July, could deepen a European recession predicted for the end of this year and the beginning of 2023, caused by higher inflation that has made everything from groceries to utility bills more expensive.

Lagarde said the bank, however, did not foresee a fall in economic output under its current assumptions. A 2022-23 recession could occur only under a “really dark” worst-case scenario where all Russian natural gas is cut off, alternative supplies are not available and governments have to resort to energy rationing, she said.

Energy prices are beyond the ECB’s control, but the bank has reasoned that rate hikes will prevent higher prices from being baked into expectations for wage and price deals and that decisive action now will forestall the need for even bigger hikes if inflation gets ingrained.

Europe’s central bank “wants to fight inflation — and wants to be seen as fighting inflation,” said Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg bank.

Though energy prices and government support programs to shield consumers from some of the pain will “have a much bigger impact on inflation and the depth of the looming recession than monetary policy,” he said.

Carsten Brzeski, chief eurozone economist at ING bank, also said the coming recession “will be driven by energy prices and not by interest rates.”

Higher rates could help the fight against inflation by raising the euro’s exchange rate against the dollar and other currencies. That’s because the euro’s recent slide to under $1 — driven by soaring energy costs and dampening economic prospects — makes imported goods, including energy, more expensive.

The ECB has lagged other global central banks in raising rates. Central banks worldwide scrambled after being wrong-footed by inflation fed by Russia’s war in Ukraine and the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which have sent energy prices higher and restricted supplies of parts and raw materials.

The sudden campaign to raise interest rates follows years in which borrowing costs and inflation stayed low because of broad trends such as globalization, aging populations and digitalization.

The ECB’s benchmark is now 1.25 per cent for lending to banks. The Fed’s main benchmark is 2.25 per cent to 2.5 per cent after several large rate hikes, including two of three-quarters of a point. The Bank of England’s key benchmark is 1.75 per cent, and the Bank of Canada on Wednesday raised its benchmark by three-quarters of a point, to 3.25 per cent.

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Black Immigrant Daily News

…Guyana treats everyone equally – Ali to Suriname’s Private Sector

Guyana and Suriname have agreed to meet in two weeks for high-level discussions on the issue of the continued harassment of Guyanese fisherfolk by the Surinamese authorities.

This was related on Wednesday by President Dr Irfaan Ali, who told members of the press that he had a conversation with Surinamese President Chan Santokhi on his country’s foot-dragging on the granting of licences to Guyanese fishermen.

The two Heads of State also deliberated on the detention of Guyanese fishing vessels by Surinamese authorities.

“I reached out directly to President Santokhi. There’s active work going on right now in relation to the boats that were kept on the Surinamese side; that matter is being resolved as I speak to you,” President Ali explained.

Guyanese President Dr Irfaan Ali and Surinamese President Chandrikapersad Santokhi [File Photo]In relation to the substantive issue of granting licences to Guyanese fisherfolk, he said a meeting between the Foreign Ministers of both countries would be held in 14 days.

“There are some concerns from their side. We’ve made our case very clear; we’ve given all the data…I’m pleased at the efforts that were made in the last 24 hours to address the immediate concerns in terms of the vessels that were kept there and I’m now looking forward for the meeting that will be held between the two Foreign Ministers…on the long-term solution,” President Ali expressed.

The Guyanese Head of State further revealed that he reached out to representatives of the Surinamese Private Sector on the issue.

“I called key members of the Surinamese Private Sector myself to let them understand we treat everyone equally here, we give everyone an opportunity here and that they should ensure that similar treatment is accorded to Guyanese,” he reasoned.

Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh, the President noted, also made interventions in this regard.

It was only on Monday that the Guyana Government issued a statement condemning “in its strongest possible terms, the most recent harassment being meted out to our Guyanese fisherfolk by the Surinamese Government, inclusive of its failure to grant licences to our fishermen”.

The Guyana Government explained that this would have been in keeping with a commitment made to President Ali in November 2020 during a visit to Suriname.

“During that visit, the Hon Zulfikar Mustapha, Minister of Agriculture of Guyana, met with Hon Parmanand Sewdien, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Suriname and requested the issuance of 150 SK licences which will allow Guyanese fishermen to ply their trade in Suriname Ocean waters,” the statement reminded.

The statement further recapped that at the last meeting of President Ali and President Santokhi in Georgetown, it was agreed that by January 1, 2022, arrangements would have been put in place to facilitate the issuance of the 150 SK licences to Guyanese fishermen.

“Taking into account this decision, the Minister of Agriculture of Guyana communicated the names of the persons interested in being issued licences via a letter dated 16 November 2021 to his Surinamese counterpart. To date, the Government of Guyana has not been advised on the status of the establishment of the company referred to, nor on the issuances of the licences,” the statement noted.

It added that, “in the absence of the issuance of these licences, our fisherfolk continue to face harassment at the hands of the Surinamese authorities, including fishing vessels that are stranded in Suriname and cannot return to Guyana for fear of losing their licences”.

Most of the fishermen, when they go into the Atlantic Ocean, are still considered to be in Surinamese waters, hence the need for a licence from the Dutch-speaking country to operate there.

These fishermen also operate from the Corentyne Coast and have to use the Corentyne River to get access to the Atlantic Ocean where they get most of their catch. The Corentyne River is considered Surinamese territory.

Currently, the licences are issued to Surinamese businessmen at US$100 per year and rented to the Guyanese fisherfolk at US$3000 annually.

About 150 boats operate from the Number 66 Fisherman’s Co-op Society thus providing direct employment for about 800 fishers. Additionally, some 200 persons are employed in providing services which include transportation, fish vending, and repairs to machinery and equipment.

Guyana’s Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo is on record saying that the Guyana Government has suspicions why the Santokhi-led Administration is not honouring its pledges.

“Sometimes they go back and forth because the right people are making a lot of money off of these licences over there, so, they don’t want to give them [to Guyanese]. Therefore, they are fighting. Even when there is goodwill at the level of the Government, there is a problem at other levels,” Jagdeo had contended.

President Ali, in his interaction with the media on Wednesday, said that he was “very clear” about the direction in which his Government would pursue this matter.

He noted that “we have some other options available being members of Caricom, but I wouldn’t explore that now.”

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