I hope the Green Paper on the proposed Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) is a work in progress. The paper outlines a fiscal rule for withdrawals and the passive investment strategies for the foreign assets that will make up the Natural Resource Fund (NRF). It is quite intuitive why a NRF is necessary. It’s like a…
Professor Clive Thomas stimulated much discussion last week when he proposed the idea of a US$5000 per year cash transfer to Guyanese families. The fact that the proposal is open ended stimulated a lot of heated discussions on social media. Several claims were made: these payments will stimulate the money supply and therefore engender inflation;…
The proposal by Professor Clive Thomas of the distribution of cash from the projected oil revenue to every Guyanese household caught me by surprise. With the proposed payout, there is every likelihood that the price paid for goods and services will invariably increase, thus reducing the real purchasing power to the beneficiary. Firstly, we need…
I feel the coolness of the breeze that permeated the Guyana coastline from the letter penned by Chartered Accountant Nigel Hinds in the Kaieteur News of August 3. For this letter to be published just after we celebrated Emancipation Day seems very refreshing and applicable. Our Government should recognize, albeit their authority to govern our…
I was planning to write this week about the recent parliamentary debates over the role of the Bank of Guyana in the financial system and foreign exchange market. However, I will discuss the more recent appointment by President David Granger of the new head of the fledgling agency, the Department of Energy (DoE). There is…
Guyanese on social media were euphoric last week when it was announced that the country now has at least 4 billion barrels of recoverable reserves. This would imply a capacity to produce 750,000 barrels per day. OilNow reported Minister Trotman as being very optimistic and even carried the headline “The coming oil bonanza.” Members of…
On Thursday June 22, 2018, the Wall Street Journal published an article titled “Eureka! Giant Oil Find Set to Bring Guyana Startling Riches—Maybe”. The Wall Street Journal is among the top business newspapers in the world. It is widely read by many investors and business people such as Warren Buffett and Bill Gates. Thus, it…
On June 1st, 2018 the Stabroek News published an article discussing a report by Norway’s Rystad Energy. Other Caribbean newspapers have published similar articles. However, there appears to be inconsistencies in the report that need clarification. Here are a few points of concern: It was stated that Rystad is forecasting 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) in…
Guyana has struck oil but for the panelists at a discussion on Wednesday there is no reason to celebrate. In fact one panelist argued that there are actually grounds for saying that government acted illegally in signing to such terms. On Wednesday, the Moray House Trust held a panel discussion where economists Collin Constantine and…
