AHEAD

came together, it was under the umbrella of the protectionist relationship with the United Kingdom, which offered preferential treatment for our sugar and banana industries. Now, these measures are no longer in place.

“Everybody touts the fact that last year, we had the fastest-growing stock exchange in the world. In 1993, we did as well, but by 1996, we had the highest interest rates in the history of Jamaica. The deposit rate was 20 per cent and the lending rate was 130 per cent. What that meant was that all of the decisions around production were short term and you couldn’t take a long-term decision around agriculture,” the businessman reminded his audience.

The Jamaica Producers Group CEO charged Jamaican businesses to position themselves to take advantage of opportunities arising from the trade war between the United States and China.

“... If there was some discussion that [the US is] not going to make this stuff (cell phones) in China, the likelihood of it being assembled in Nebraska or in Kansas is also going to be very challenging. What that means for me in the logistics business is a reasonable probability that Jamaica, with our labour force, we present ourselves as a sensible alternative.

“[I am] prepared to have conversations on reasonable terms with everybody and we have world-class transportation links already – not to mention a BPO industry that is already proving the point with telecommunications. Maybe there is a future for us in logistics, maybe there is a future for us in manufacturing,” Hall said.