1996 – Page 101

Last week, Leonel Fernández said that if elected he will finish the public works that the present government has under construction, and that contribute to the development of the country. Leonel Fernández was touring the area of Barahona. He said that if elected, he would promote ecotourism in the area and would develop the port …

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There is widespread consensus amongst economic circles regarding the soundness of the latest decisions made by the Central Bank with a view to encouraging growth in various sectors of the economy. The Central Bank recently announced that it was reducing the interest rate for agricultural, industrial and small business loans from 22.5 to 18 percent. …

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The U.S. ambassador, Donna Jean Hrinak, has advised the government of the adverse effects that the requirement for consular invoices to accompany imports is having on U.S. businesses in the D.R.’s free trade zones. She said that some businesses have halted production because they are unable to remove their imported raw materials from the ports. …

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The president of the American Chamber of Commerce, Ernest Burri, said that the passing of the new foreign investment law will probably stimulate growth in many areas. He maintains that the new legislation will attract foreign capital into the country provided a genuine effort is made to promote the Dominican Republic as a safe place …

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There is widespread disagreement concerning the sale of the nationalized cement manufacturing facility to a Swiss multinational. In a surprise move, Pedro Breton, head of CORDE, the state enterprises corporation, revealed that the government had ordered the sale of 70 percent of the company’s shares to Swiss-based Umar LTD-Holderbank, one of the world’s leaders in …

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The economist, Andres Dauhajre, executive director of the Economy and Development Foundation praised the Monetary Board for authorizing development and mortgage banks to offer some financial services hitherto restricted to the commercial banks. The measure will enable the institutions, after being granted approval by the Central Bank, to provide savings and current accounts, credit cards, …

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Falconbridge Dominicana, a subsidiary of the Canadian-based Falconbridge, which mines ferronickel in the northern town of Bonao, reported that it paid direct taxes to the Dominican government totaling US$58.1 million in 1995. Moreover, it converted US$39.8 into pesos through the local exchange market to finance its operations in this country. The figures combined totaled US$98.5 …

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The Dominican Republic is amongst a small group of eight Latin American nations that recorded a higher per capita GDP in 1995 compared to that in 1980, according to a report prepared by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. The report says that the country’s per capita GDP grew at a rate …

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The Customs Directorate has announced that its revenues increased in 1995 by 11.5 percent over the previous year. The department reported that its collections amounted to RD$8,635 million. Import duties accounted for 95.6 percent of the total while duties on foreign trade amounted to 37.6 percent, a decrease of 3.4 percent. The government depends heavily …

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The government has sent an agreement signed with the United States aimed at reducing tariffs and other barriers standing in the way of free trade between both countries to Congress. Featured prominently in the agreement is the country’s commitment to protect U.S. intellectual property. This has been a very thorny issue in U.S.-Dominican relations for …

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