Economists see little activity for rest of year

FORTY-TWO PER CENT of economists in Barbados believe that economic activity in the island will remain flat for the next six months. This information was revealed by the newly elected president of the Barbados Economics Society (BES), Dr Winston Moore, as he gave the results of an online survey of economists about their expectations for the Barbados economy for the rest of 2010.Moore, a University of the West Indies economics lecturer and former central banker, revealed the findings of the BES survey at the organisation’s annual general meeting held last Wednesday  at The Savannah Hotel, Hastings, Christ Church.He indicated that due to the relatively flat expectations for growth, it was anticipated that employment, the fiscal deficit and net international reserves should deteriorate over the next six months.Fluctuating oil prices on the international market was also a point of interest for economists in Barbados, with 80 per cent of them believing that oil prices would increase in the coming months. According to the survey results, 44 per cent of economists believe that Government’s fiscal response was good, particularly considering future policy agenda. On the way forward for the Barbados economy, given all of the current constraints and challenges, 52 per cent of economists wanted to see a cut in public expenditure while maintaining the Central Bank of Barbados interest rate. Results from the survey also highlighted that 65 per cent of economists believe that the Central Bank’s response to what the economy needed was good or very good. (SB)