Carib Scope

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  • Spirit Airlines goes out of business after 34 years, ending operations immediately

    Spirit Airlines goes out of business after 34 years, ending operations immediately

    West Palm Beach, Florida (AP) – After three decades of disrupting the U.S. aviation sector with cheeky, unconventional advertising and industry-shaking rock-bottom ticket prices, iconic ultralow-cost carrier Spirit Airlines has announced its immediate permanent closure. The 34-year-old airline, recognizable for its signature bright yellow fleet that once operated hundreds of daily domestic flights and employed roughly 17,000 workers, confirmed Saturday that it has commenced an orderly wind-down of all business operations, effective immediately.

    All scheduled Spirit flights have been canceled, and the airline has suspended all customer support services effective immediately, the company confirmed in an official post on its website. The sudden shutdown caught countless travelers and workers off guard: passengers arriving at airports across the country Saturday morning for planned trips were shocked to find their flights eliminated, while Spirit employees learned overnight that they had lost their jobs without warning.

    In its official closure announcement, Spirit leadership reflected on the carrier’s decades-long legacy: “We are proud of the impact of our ultra-low-cost model on the industry over the last 34 years and had hoped to serve our guests for many years to come.”

    U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy released a public statement Saturday addressing the aftermath of the shutdown. He confirmed that Spirit had maintained a dedicated reserve fund to issue refunds to customers who purchased tickets directly through the airline, while passengers who booked via third-party sellers such as travel agencies will need to pursue reimbursement from those vendors. Duffy also issued a clear warning to Spirit ticket holders to avoid unnecessary travel to airports.

    “If you have a flight scheduled with Spirit Airlines, don’t show up at the airport. There will be no one here to assist you,” Duffy emphasized.

    To accommodate displaced passengers, Duffy announced that four major U.S. carriers – United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, JetBlue and Southwest Airlines – are offering limited-time $200 one-way tickets to travelers with valid Spirit confirmation numbers and proof of purchase. The major airlines have also pledged support for out-of-work Spirit employees, including opening expedited, preferential hiring pathways for affected workers and assisting crew members who are stranded far from their home bases.

    Spirit added in its statement that it is currently coordinating to repatriate more than 1,300 crew members to their home locations. The carrier’s final operational flight touched down at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Saturday, arriving from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, marking the end of more than three decades of service. The company also clarified that while eligible customers can expect to receive refunds, Spirit will not provide assistance rebooking travel on other competing carriers.

    The shutdown comes after failed efforts to secure a federal government bailout to keep the cash-strapped airline afloat. The Trump administration had explored the possibility of a rescue package, but no agreement was ever finalized. Addressing the collapsed bailout talks, Duffy noted that federal resources did not allow for the rescue: “We often times don’t have half a billion dollars laying around.”

    President Donald Trump first publicly floated the possibility of a government bailout last week, after Spirit entered its second bankruptcy restructuring in less than two years. The carrier’s final financial crisis was exacerbated by skyrocketing jet fuel prices, which were driven upward by the ongoing Iran war.

  • New blueprint

    New blueprint

    In Jamaica’s increasingly saturated new housing market, architect Mlela Matandara-Clarke has built a distinctive niche that is far more challenging to achieve than it appears: delivering aesthetically striking, thoughtfully designed homes at price points accessible to ordinary working Jamaicans.

    After seven years in operation, her firm Matandara-Clarke Architects has cultivated a design identity rooted in what Matandara-Clarke describes as “creative, tropical, contemporary design solutions.” This philosophy is on full display in the studio’s latest flagship project: Wick Hall Estate, a multi-phase residential development being built by ALTRUHOMES in Spanish Town, St Catherine, which is already in advanced stages of construction.

    The development’s core design mission is to deliver premium value at an accessible cost, a deliberate departure from the cookie-cutter layouts and low-quality finishes that have long defined Jamaica’s mid-priced housing segment.

    “Wick Hall is targeted at Jamaicans living on regular incomes who deserve access to high-quality housing they can actually afford,” Matandara-Clarke explained. “That has always been the intentional goal for our client: to let this group of homebuyers own a property that fits their budget while still granting them an elevated standard of living.”

    Entry-level homes start at just JMD $28.5 million, a price point that undercuts the $40 million-plus starting cost that has become standard for new townhouses and high-rise apartments across Jamaica in recent years. Even at this accessible price, the standard inclusions read like a luxury home buyer’s wish list: porcelain tile flooring, durable sintered stone kitchen countertops, hurricane-rated aluminium windows, pre-installed solar water heating, an integrated water tank and pump system, and pre-wiring for both air conditioning and future rooftop solar panel installation. Matandara-Clarke emphasized that this full specification is intentional: new owners should move in and feel at home immediately, with no costly renovation projects waiting for them after receiving their keys. The development’s three home collections range from 800 to 1,190 square feet of interior space, sited on individual lots starting at 4,000 square feet.

    “The price point is explicitly tailored to lower-to-middle income families, and we worked to offer a range of housing types to fit different household needs,” Matandara-Clarke said. She walked through the development of the project’s design alongside her husband Deon Clarke, the firm’s design lead, and Production Director Shamar Boews.

    “We tested multiple kitchen layouts and roofing configurations, and every feature we selected was chosen to raise the overall quality of the living space,” she explained. “We modulated the roof design to combine a concrete slab on one half of the home and a gable roof on the other.”

    This structural choice creates intentional variation in ceiling height: the living room feels open and expansive, while the connected kitchen and dining area offers a cozier, more intimate atmosphere ideal for family gathering and conversation.

    Every design decision prioritizes natural cross-ventilation and abundant natural light. While the kitchen, living, and dining areas follow an open-plan layout, each zone is purposefully defined to have its own distinct character.

    “The dining space connects directly to the kitchen via an island counter, so family members can chat with the cook while meals are prepared before moving to the table for dinner,” Matandara-Clarke said. “We also placed a large window directly in front of the dining table to bring in natural light and constant airflow.”

    Hurricane resilience is not an afterthought added to the plans at Wick Hall Estate—it is built into the project’s core structural design. As Jamaica faces increasingly intense storm patterns amid a changing climate, this focus on safety has grown even more critical, but Matandara-Clarke noted that the commitment to storm-resistant design was in place long before the most recent high-profile hurricane events.

    “We were prioritizing hurricane-proofing in our designs long before the latest major storms,” she said. “From the first day of planning, we wanted to include a concrete slab component in every home, which makes the structure significantly more resilient to strong winds. We also adjusted roof angles to account for wind load requirements.”

    The angled concrete slabs also create a natural protective buffer between adjacent homes. Every unit is fitted with hurricane straps, limited eave overhangs, and parapets that anchor the ends of the roof firmly to the home’s exterior walls.

    Nestled just off Old Harbour Road, Wick Hall Estate occupies 36 acres of gently sloping land at the edge of a rapidly growing corridor that has emerged as a hub for new middle-income housing development in Jamaica. Pre-sales for the development launched recently, and full construction is scheduled for completion by August 2028. The largest offering in the development, the two-storey Terrace Collection, includes three bedrooms and three bathrooms across 1,190 square feet of interior space, plus private balconies and generous yard space for family outdoor activity. Pricing for the Terrace Collection starts at $36.5 million.

    Environmental sustainability is also baked into the development’s master plan, not just a marketing add-on. A continuous green belt runs through the center of the community, balancing built infrastructure with natural green space.

    “That green belt was really important to us—it balances the hard construction of the homes with soft natural landscape elements,” Matandara-Clarke said. “We worked hard to avoid overbuilding in sensitive areas while still maximizing the number of affordable units we could deliver. We consolidated landscaping and spread green space evenly across the entire site, with a dedicated children’s play area separate from the community centre.”

    A natural existing pond at the lowest point of the site will be retained as both a functional storm water management feature and a community recreational amenity. After consulting with Fluid Systems Engineering Limited, the firm leading storm water planning for the project, the design team chose to build a public recreational zone around the pond rather than filling it in for development.

    “Keeping the pond lets it function naturally for drainage, and it also cuts down on overall infrastructure costs,” explained design lead Clarke. “We incorporated it not just as a functional storm water feature, but as a public space that the whole community can enjoy.”

    On the topic of flooding, a persistent concern for any new residential development in Jamaica, Clarke was clear about shared responsibility for long-term safety.

    “Flood management is a shared responsibility between the developer and the local municipality,” he said. “Storm water infrastructure needs to be adequately sized from the start, properly maintained over time, and designed to scale as the community grows.” The drainage system at Wick Hall Estate is being designed with exactly that long-term flexibility in mind.

    In the end, Wick Hall Estate makes a powerful statement about what is possible in Jamaica’s housing market: it proves that thoughtful, high-quality design does not require a luxury price tag, and that Jamaicans living on regular incomes deserve access to durable, sustainable, beautiful homes that can withstand extreme weather. For Matandara-Clarke and her team, Wick Hall Estate is their clearest, most concrete demonstration of that vision to date.

  • Bury Boring: Mystique director says safe marketing costing some Jamaican brands

    Bury Boring: Mystique director says safe marketing costing some Jamaican brands

    On a Thursday morning at Kingston’s AC Hotel, attendees of the IMPACT x Mystique marketing conference fell silent as a full-sized casket was rolled to the front of the stage before the opening of Matthew Mitchell’s presentation. The creative director of Mystique Integrated Services used this shocking, unconventional opening to frame a stark message: the greatest death a brand can face is being erased from consumers’ collective memory.

    What followed over 40 minutes was a sharp, data-backed critique of the Jamaican marketing ecosystem and a forceful argument for disruptive, convention-challenging branding that cuts through digital noise. Mitchell drove home his core thesis by the end of his talk: playing it safe with generic marketing is the costliest mistake a brand can make. He posed a provocative question to the silent room: “What’s more expensive, a bold campaign or a forgotten brand?”

    Mitchell argued that the Jamaican marketing landscape is suffering from what he terms a “distinctiveness crisis” and a “memory crisis”, rather than a shortage of creative talent. Industry-wide, brands are churning out more content, launching more campaigns and producing more marketing assets than ever before, yet the lasting impact of that work is steadily declining. Too many brands rely on recycled, generic concepts—he called out overused stock imagery of families on underperforming billboards as a prime example of this uncreative cycle.

    This crisis of memorability is unfolding against an increasingly challenging backdrop: shrinking consumer attention spans. Mitchell cited independent research from multiple leading institutions to back his claim. A study from the University of California found that average screen attention has plummeted to just 40 to 47 seconds, down from 2.5 minutes a little over two decades ago. Microsoft research places average attention on digital content even lower, at just six to 10 seconds. Meanwhile, research from Amplified Intelligence confirms that consumers need a minimum of 2.5 seconds of active attention for content to leave any lasting memory.

    Beyond generic creative, Mitchell pointed to a widespread misallocation of marketing budgets across Jamaican brands. Industry best practice for effective marketing leans toward a 60:40 split between long-term brand building and short-term brand activation, which prioritizes immediate customer engagement and quick sales. But in Jamaica, Mitchell noted, most brands pour far too much investment into short-term activation at the expense of building the emotional connections that drive long-term growth.

    He held up Jamaican Campari as a standout example of how bold, purpose-driven brand building can deliver tangible results. The global premium spirit brand faced a unique local challenge: its on-the-ground consumer base in Jamaica centered on community bar patrons, while its global identity leaned into high-end sophistication. To bridge this gap, Campari conducted deep local research that identified “desire” as the core emotional driver for its Jamaican consumers.

    The brand rebuilt its entire local storytelling around this core emotion, launching the viral “Red Passion” advertising campaign headlined by popular dancehall artist Valiant. The campaign also included a consumer promotion called “Win Your Passion”, which gives customers who purchase Campari a chance to win desire-aligned prizes, including a couples’ vacation and carnival costumes. Mitchell reported that the strategy has delivered overwhelming success: Campari has recorded a significant jump in sales following the brand refresh, proving that aligning bold creative with local emotional resonance delivers results.

    Mitchell also highlighted U.S. canned water brand Liquid Death, famous for its edgy “Murder Your Thirst” tagline, as a second example of how unapologetically bold branding drives sales growth.

    Beyond being forgotten, Mitchell outlined multiple hidden costs of sticking to safe, generic marketing: increased price sensitivity among consumers, internal institutional mediocrity, failure to connect with local cultural contexts, and persistent unnecessary marketing spend. He closed by reinforcing the core chain that drives brand growth: “The data is clear, emotion drives growth, distinctiveness drives memory, and memory, once I remember you, we’re going to grow together. So, when we choose safe work, we’re not just reducing risk, we’re reducing impact.”

  • Last man standing

    Last man standing

    The U.S. low-cost aviation sector faced a seismic shift Saturday when Spirit Airlines announced an immediate shutdown of all global operations, erasing more than 17,000 jobs and leaving just one major carrier connecting Fort Lauderdale, Florida and Kingston, Jamaica. In a public statement released early Saturday, the airline confirmed all flights had been canceled and all customer service operations would cease immediately, calling the development a source of profound disappointment.

    The abrupt collapse comes after a last-ditch $500 million White House-backed rescue package fell through, capping a period of mounting financial instability for the carrier. As of December 31, Spirit’s parent company Spirit Aviation Holdings Inc. carried $8.08 billion in total liabilities and recorded a $2.09 billion deficit, marking the carrier’s second bankruptcy restructuring in less than two years. The final blow to the struggling airline came from a dramatic surge in global jet fuel prices, driven by ongoing geopolitical tensions disrupting global oil supplies.

    Industry data underscores the scale of the gap Spirit leaves in the Southeastern U.S. aviation market. U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics figures show Spirit held a 26.6% market share at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL), handling 3.38 million passengers between February 2025 and January 2026. It also commanded an 11.48% share of the Orlando market, moving 2.75 million passengers in the same period. On the high-demand FLL to Kingston’s Norman Manley International Airport (KIN) route alone, Spirit carried 23.09% of all passengers in December 2025, filling 78% of its available seats to serve unmet demand on the corridor. Caribbean Airlines had already exited this route and the FLL-Montego Bay Sangster International Airport (MBJ) corridor in November, just 12 months after re-launching service, leaving JetBlue Airways as the sole active operator on the FLL-KIN route. While Delta and Frontier list limited service to MBJ on booking platforms, JetBlue controls the vast majority of available flights between the two countries.

    In response to the crisis, major U.S. carriers including JetBlue, United, Delta and Southwest moved quickly to assist stranded passengers and displaced Spirit workers. The four airlines introduced capped, affordable rescue fares for passengers holding canceled Spirit tickets, and extended free travel benefits and standby seats to Spirit crew members seeking to return home. All four carriers also announced open interview processes for Spirit employees affected by the shutdown.

    JetBlue, which already dominated the FLL-Jamaica corridor prior to Spirit’s collapse, has moved to expand its footprint at FLL to fill the service gap. Joanna Geraghty, JetBlue’s CEO, noted in a press statement that South Florida is a core strategic market for the carrier, and that the company was stepping in to maintain connectivity for travelers amid the upheaval. “Our focus is on stepping up in the near term by adding service, maintaining connectivity, and keeping fares competitive so customers can continue to travel with confidence,” Geraghty said.

    JetBlue’s expansion plan includes adding 11 new destination routes from FLL, boosting domestic capacity on existing U.S. routes and adding extra flights to the Dominican Republic cities of Santo Domingo and Santiago de los Caballeros in the coming weeks. This summer, the airline expects to operate nearly 130 daily departures from FLL, the largest operation in the airline’s history at the airport and a 75% increase in daily flights compared to 2025. The carrier has also reworked its connection structure at FLL, expanding from two to four connecting banks daily to open up more travel options for passengers from the U.S. Northeast connecting to Caribbean and Latin American destinations.

    Despite the planned expansion, JetBlue faces significant headwinds from the same skyrocketing fuel prices that pushed Spirit into collapse. Global jet fuel prices have nearly doubled in just two months, jumping from an average of $2.24 per gallon to $4.32, driven by supply chain disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, which carries 20% of the world’s daily oil supply. The disruption stems from the ongoing unresolved conflict between the U.S.-Israel coalition and Iran that began February 28.

    During JetBlue’s April 28 earnings call, Geraghty outlined the carrier’s strategy to navigate the crisis, noting that the company would need to trim overall capacity even as it expands at FLL. “With demand continuing to remain strong, it’s important we take a flexible approach, trimming capacity as we head into the peak summer season. We plan to closely monitor market conditions and expect to reduce additional capacity after the summer peak, assuming fuel prices remain elevated,” she said. The carrier is relying on three core adjustments to offset fuel costs: incremental fare adjustments, cutting unprofitable, low-productivity routes, and rolling out additional company-wide cost-saving measures. Because 90% of the carrier’s first-quarter capacity was already booked before the latest fuel price surge, JetBlue was unable to recoup the added costs, but expects to recover 30% to 40% of the extra fuel expenses in the second quarter and 100% by 2027.

    JetBlue reported it paid an extra $62 million in fuel costs during the first quarter, even after cutting fuel consumption by 2.7% (5 million gallons), leading to a total first-quarter fuel bill of $573 million. To strengthen its cash position amid the volatility, the carrier recently secured a $500 million loan, using 22 Airbus aircraft as collateral.

    The collapse of Spirit and broader fuel price surge has created new uncertainty for Jamaica’s recovering tourism sector, which has been slowly rebuilding since Hurricane Melissa struck in October 2025. Jamaica has seen steady gains in passenger traffic in recent months, with Sangster International Airport, which handles 70% of the country’s tourist arrivals, welcoming more than 358,000 passengers in March and 917,400 in the first quarter.

    However, industry leaders warn that rising fuel costs and reduced airline capacity are already starting to impact forward bookings to Jamaica, with multiple carriers quietly cutting unprofitable routes to the Caribbean. Richard Pandohie, CEO of Jamaican manufacturing and hospitality conglomerate Seprod Limited, recently noted on social media that airline route cuts driven by fuel costs are already affecting the region, including Jamaica, with changes happening quietly without major public announcements. Major global carriers have already announced deep capacity cuts: Lufthansa will cancel 20,000 short-haul flights through October, while Air Canada has suspended service between Montreal and New York City.

    The turbulence comes as Jamaican hospitality continues to reset after Hurricane Melissa, with multiple major resort groups pushing back reopening timelines for damaged properties. Hyatt Hotels has delayed the reopening of its eight Jamaican all-inclusive resorts from November 2026 to the first quarter of 2027, saying the adjusted timeline allows the company to continue supporting employees through continued pay, benefits and training while maintaining a core on-site team ahead of a full restart. Sandals Resorts International has also pushed back the reopening of three damaged properties from May 2026 to November and December 2026, using the extra time to complete full-scale renovations of the resorts ahead of reopening. Four Royalton properties are on track to reopen between August and September 2026, while Bahia Principe Grand Jamaica is scheduled to resume operations in December 2026, per Jamaica’s official tourism board website.

    Beyond fuel price volatility and airline consolidation, Jamaica’s hospitality sector faces an additional upcoming headwind: a planned increase in the general consumption tax on tourism services, which will rise from 10% to 15% in April 2027.

  • Belize Just Lost its Most Affordable Flight to the US

    Belize Just Lost its Most Affordable Flight to the US

    On May 2, 2026, low-cost carrier Spirit Airlines abruptly ceased all global operations, bringing an immediate end to the most affordable air route connecting Belize to the United States just six months after the service launched. The sudden shutdown, which came after last-minute negotiations for a $500 million U.S. government bailout fell apart, left thousands of passengers stranded and eliminated the budget-friendly travel option that had been hailed as a major win for Belize’s tourism industry.

    Officials at Philip S. W. Goldson International Airport, Belize’s main air hub, released an official public statement shortly after Spirit’s shutdown confirming that all of the airline’s scheduled flights had been canceled with no advance warning, and all customer service channels for the carrier are now permanently offline. “All Spirit flights have been cancelled, and customer service is no longer available,” the airport’s notice read, echoing Spirit’s own immediate halt to all operations.

    Spirit’s collapse was the culmination of months of mounting financial turmoil that stretches back to mid-2025. The airline first filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August 2025, driven by two major pressures: a failed merger deal that would have consolidated its position in the ultra-low-cost carrier market, and skyrocketing global fuel costs that eroded already thin profit margins. Even in bankruptcy, the airline pushed forward with expansion into the Belize market, launching three weekly nonstop flights between Fort Lauderdale, Florida and Belize City in November 2025 with an introductory one-way fare of just $85.

    At the time of the route’s launch, Belize’s Minister of Tourism Anthony Mahler celebrated the new service as a transformative development for the country’s travel sector. By introducing a low-cost competitor to existing carriers serving the route, Mahler noted that Spirit would put downward pressure on ticket prices across the board while giving budget-conscious travelers a much-needed new option. “This will keep them a bit honest and give travellers an option at least,” Mahler said in November 2025.

    That budget option disappeared entirely over the weekend of May 2, as bailout negotiations between the Trump administration and Spirit’s bankruptcy stakeholders collapsed. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that administration officials had explored a potential rescue package, but President Donald Trump signaled caution ahead of the final talks, telling reporters on Friday that “I guess we’re looking at it. If we could do it, we do it, but only if it’s a good deal.” That deal ultimately never materialized, leading to the airline’s immediate shutdown.

    Travel officials have issued urgent guidance for passengers who held existing bookings on Spirit: anyone with upcoming travel plans on the carrier is advised not to travel to their departure airport, and should rebook their travel on a different airline as soon as possible. For Belize’s tourism industry, the loss of Spirit’s low fares is expected to create immediate headwinds, as the country relies heavily on U.S. travelers for a large share of its tourism revenue.

  • Feeling the pinch? Belizeans are Running Out of Optimism

    Feeling the pinch? Belizeans are Running Out of Optimism

    As households across Belize grapple with mounting financial pressures, the country’s consumer optimism has hit its sharpest monthly decline in nearly a year, according to fresh data released by the Statistical Institute of Belize. The latest national Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), a key metric tracking public sentiment toward personal finances and big-ticket spending, recorded a 4.5% drop in March 2026, sliding from 47.8 to 45.7 — the steepest month-on-month fall since June 2025.

    Every core segment of the closely watched index weakened over the period, signaling broad-based economic unease across the country. Forward-looking expectations for future financial conditions fell by 4.9%, while assessments of current economic circumstances dropped 4.2%. Most notably for broader economic growth, consumer willingness to commit to major purchases — including property, vehicles, and large household furniture — declined by 4.3%, a trend that could dampen demand across multiple key sectors in the coming quarters.

    The report also reveals stark divides in how different demographic and geographic groups are experiencing the current economic climate. Urban residents have borne the brunt of fading optimism, with city-based consumer confidence plummeting 9.2% month-on-month, compared to a marginal 0.7% dip among their rural counterparts.

    At the district level, the Belize District recorded the most dramatic drop in consumer sentiment. Among age groups, young Belizeans between 18 and 24 years old saw the largest single-month decline, with their confidence index falling a staggering 13.9% — a reading that points to growing economic anxiety among the country’s emerging working population.

    Against this national downward trend, the Stann Creek District stood out as the only outlier. Bucking the nationwide slump, consumer confidence in Stann Creek jumped 12.6% in March, pushing the district’s index into positive, optimistic territory for the first time in recent quarters. Analysts are yet to release detailed breakdowns of what is driving the regional divergence, but the disparity highlights uneven economic conditions across Belize’s different regions as households navigate ongoing cost-of-living challenges.

  • Caribbean Development Bank appoints experienced finance leader Gillian Charles-Gollop as Vice President, Corporate Services

    Caribbean Development Bank appoints experienced finance leader Gillian Charles-Gollop as Vice President, Corporate Services

    The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), a leading regional financial institution focused on advancing Caribbean growth and development, has announced a key addition to its executive leadership team. Effective May 1, 2026, seasoned finance executive Gillian Charles-Gollop will take up the post of Vice President of Corporate Services, marking a pivotal milestone for both the executive and the regional development bank.

    With more than 30 years of robust experience spanning the global banking and financial services sector, Charles-Gollop brings a proven track record of exceptional achievement across multiple critical domains of finance. Her career has been defined by consistent delivery of positive outcomes for clients, foundational improvements to organizational governance, impactful people leadership, and measurable progress in advancing sustainable finance across the Caribbean region. Her leadership style balances innovative strategic thinking with disciplined operational execution, an alignment that dovetails perfectly with CDB’s long-stated priorities of operational excellence and responsible financial stewardship. Her professional background covers a diverse range of high-stakes functions, including corporate and investment banking, institutional governance, enterprise strategic planning, and comprehensive credit and operational risk management.

    Most recently, Charles-Gollop served as Executive Director for Corporate Banking and Sustainable Finance at CIBC Caribbean. In that role, she oversaw regional strategic leadership for a portfolio of corporate and sovereign client credit holdings valued at more than US$6 billion, while also driving the expansion of the bank’s regional sustainable finance strategy across the Caribbean. Over the course of her career, she has led a wide array of complex industry initiatives, including large-scale financing projects, mergers and acquisition advisory mandates, capital markets transactions and debt conversion deals, and infrastructure development financing for major projects across renewable energy, utilities, telecommunications and public infrastructure throughout the Caribbean.

    A national of Saint Lucia, Charles-Gollop has earned widespread recognition across the regional finance industry for her professional excellence and forward-thinking leadership. She has received multiple awards and industry commendations for her work in risk management, operational performance improvement, and client service delivery throughout her career. Academically and professionally, she holds a Master of Business Administration degree in Finance from the University of Leicester, and is an Associate of the Institute of Canadian Bankers. Her qualifications are further strengthened by formal governance accreditation from the Chartered Governance Institute of Canada, specialist certification in sustainability and climate risk from the Global Association of Risk Professionals, certification as a change management practitioner, and completion of CIBC Caribbean’s competitive Senior Leadership Program.

    CDB President Daniel M. Best framed the appointment as a strategic strengthening of the bank’s leadership at a critical juncture for regional development. “Gillian’s appointment strengthens CDB’s leadership team at a pivotal time,” Best stated. “Her strategic insight, deep financial expertise, and strong commitment to the region’s advancement will be invaluable as we continue to enhance financial management, mobilise resources, and support sustainable development across our borrowing member countries.”

    In her new role as Vice President for Corporate Services, Charles-Gollop will oversee strategic direction and management of all the bank’s corporate service functions, with a mandate to ensure efficient operations and robust institutional support for CDB’s regional development work. A longstanding passionate advocate for building more sustainable and resilient financial systems across the Caribbean, she will play a key role in advancing CDB’s core mission of accelerating inclusive, equitable economic growth and sustainable development across the entire Caribbean region.

  • Spirit Airlines shutdown leads to widespread flight cancellations across the US

    Spirit Airlines shutdown leads to widespread flight cancellations across the US

    In a landmark shift for the U.S. low-cost aviation sector, pioneering discount carrier Spirit Airlines has abruptly halted all operations overnight after failing to secure critical emergency funding to keep its fleet in the sky. The collapse of the 30-year-old budget airline has eliminated 17,000 jobs and removed a major source of affordable air travel from domestic and international markets, leaving tens of thousands of ticketed passengers scrambling for alternative arrangements.

    Unlike smaller U.S. airline failures recorded in recent years, Spirit’s shutdown carries far broader ripple effects: the carrier operated an extensive network connecting major U.S. hubs including New York, Los Angeles, Miami and Detroit, alongside popular leisure destinations across Latin America and the Caribbean, served entirely by a fleet of Airbus aircraft. For passengers holding unused Spirit tickets, the airline has outlined initial guidance for reimbursement, though uncertainty remains for many bookers.

    Tickets purchased directly from Spirit via credit or debit card will be automatically refunded, the company confirmed. Travelers who booked through third-party travel agencies have been directed to file refund requests through their respective agencies. For bookings made with Spirit loyalty points, vouchers or airline credit, Spirit says reimbursement terms will be finalized through the upcoming bankruptcy process, but travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt, founder of the Atmosphere Research Group, warned that affected passengers have almost no chance of recovering that value.

    The airline has also urged all ticketed passengers not to visit airport terminals, as all Spirit customer service and ground operations have already been shut down following mass layoffs of its staff. While stranded passengers will not be able to get on-site assistance from Spirit, competing carriers across the U.S. have stepped in to offer capped, discounted fares to displaced Spirit customers, mirroring the coordinated response the industry typically mounts during hurricanes or large-scale natural disasters.

    Among the carriers offering relief, JetBlue Airways has moved fastest to expand its support. The airline will cap one-way fares for displaced passengers at $99 through May 6, requiring proof of a canceled Spirit itinerary to access the rate. For the high-traffic Fort Lauderdale-San Juan route, a core Spirit route that JetBlue already has major operations on, one-way fares will be capped at $299 for bookings made between May 1 and May 8. “With major operations in Fort Lauderdale and San Juan, we’re in a unique position to help Spirit customers get where they need to go and ensure flights remain affordable despite greater demand,” said JetBlue CEO Joanna Geraghty. JetBlue also announced plans to dramatically scale up its Fort Lauderdale operations this summer, launching 130 daily departures — a 75% increase from 2023 — and adding new service to destinations including Barranquilla and Cali in Colombia, Baltimore, Charlotte, Detroit, Chicago and Houston.

    Southwest Airlines has also put in place a tiered fare cap system: domestic one-way trips under 500 miles will cost no more than $200, trips between 500 and 1,000 miles are capped at $300, and trips over 1,000 miles are capped at $400, with all fares available for purchase directly at airport ticket counters. Southwest added it will also honor Spirit frequent flyer status and associated benefits for affected customers, including early boarding. American Airlines, Frontier Airlines and United Airlines have all followed suit with their own fare cap initiatives, while the broader industry has coordinated to get displaced Spirit flight crews back to their home bases.

    The collapse of Spirit, best known for its signature bright yellow aircraft, ultra-low base fares and unbundled pricing for add-on services, follows years of mounting financial pressure. The carrier had been teetering on the edge of liquidation for weeks after it failed to reach an agreement with bondholders to unlock a $500 million emergency support package, and filed for its second bankruptcy in less than 12 months last year.

    Multiple interconnected factors led to the airline’s ultimate collapse. A proposed acquisition by JetBlue was blocked by antitrust regulators, eliminating the airline’s clearest path to financial stability. At the same time, rising fuel and labor costs upended the carrier’s thin-margin business model, and a widespread manufacturing defect in Pratt & Whitney jet engines forced dozens of Spirit aircraft to be grounded indefinitely, cutting into the airline’s ability to generate revenue. Shifting consumer trends also worked against Spirit: post-pandemic demand for premium, full-service travel has surged, while large legacy carriers have rolled out their own basic economy fares that match Spirit’s low price points while offering larger route networks and included perks like free Wi-Fi, complimentary snacks, more legroom and airport lounges.

    Looking ahead, aviation analysts predict that the exit of a major discount carrier will push airfares higher in at least some markets, even after accounting for the fact that Spirit had already sharply scaled back its flight schedule in the months leading up to its shutdown. Major competing airlines have already been adding capacity on Spirit’s former routes and at its hub airports, and will accelerate that expansion in the coming months to absorb displaced demand.

  • Ramdeen: Money to fix roads, buy meds

    Ramdeen: Money to fix roads, buy meds

    Trinidad and Tobago’s state-owned National Gas Company (NGC) has announced a major strategic reallocation of its $700 million corporate social responsibility sponsorship budget, shifting funds away from cultural and community event sponsorships toward urgent public needs including road repairs, hospital medication stock, public servant salaries, and national social safety net support. The announcement was made by NGC Chairman Gerald Ramdeen during a recent gas supply contract signing ceremony with Houston-based energy firm EOG Resources at Port of Spain’s Hyatt Regency.

    Ramdeen used the public event to push back against widespread public criticism of the company’s earlier sponsorship cuts, which sparked outrage across Trinidad and Tobago’s cultural sector late last year. At that time, NGC withdrew funding from high-profile local organizations including the Bocas Lit Fest literary festival and multiple top steel orchestras across the country, drawing significant public pushback over the loss of support for community and cultural initiatives.

    In his address, Ramdeen outlined the dramatic operational cost cuts the new NGC board has implemented since taking over leadership, noting that annual operating costs fell from $1.8 billion to $1.1 billion under the current leadership. He also pushed back against common narratives that attribute the company’s doubled profit growth over the past 10 months to restructuring at Atlantic LNG, the country’s major liquefied natural gas export facility. Instead, he credited targeted operational decisions and intentional leadership appointments for the improved financial performance.

    A key example Ramdeen highlighted was the company’s decision to invest in a new truck compressor, a move that resolved long-standing pressure issues that had previously restricted gas flow into Atlantic LNG. Prior to this investment, he noted, infrastructure limitations sometimes prevented NGC from delivering any gas to the export facility. The new compressor has allowed NGC to take full control of gas flows to Atlantic LNG, and to offer compression services to downstream partners under existing transportation contracts. Today, Ramdeen noted, NGC is delivering nearly 200 million standard cubic feet of gas daily to Atlantic LNG, even ahead of the 90 million cubic feet per day of new production expected to come online from upcoming projects next year. This consistent, elevated output has already allowed the country to export an additional full cargo of LNG, generating more than US$50 million in extra revenue for the national treasury at current market prices, he added.

    Ramdeen defended the budget reallocation, noting that the company receives 10 new sponsorship requests daily, and that the $700 million previously allocated to event and group sponsorships will now deliver far greater public benefit by addressing core public needs. “That money will now be taken to fix your roads, to put medicine in your hospitals, to pay your public servants to look after the social net of this country, and that is where it rightfully should be,” he said. The reallocated funds will also be returned to national shareholders, aligning with the company’s new mandate to prioritize broad public good over discrete cultural sponsorships.

    The contract signing with EOG Resources marks a continued partnership between the state-owned NGC and the international independent energy firm, reinforcing ongoing collaboration to expand domestic gas production and export capacity in Trinidad and Tobago.

  • SVG’s medium-term growth expected to converge to 2.7%

    SVG’s medium-term growth expected to converge to 2.7%

    The International Monetary Fund (IMF), headquartered in Washington D.C., has released a revised economic assessment for St. Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), warning that the escalating conflict in the Middle East has exacerbated near-term challenges for both economic expansion and price stability, with significant downside risks remaining to the overall outlook.

    The updated forecast was delivered Tuesday by Sergei Antoshin, the IMF’s mission chief for SVG, during a joint press briefing with SVG Prime Minister and Finance Minister Godwin Friday in Kingstown. The briefing marked the conclusion of the IMF’s 2026 annual Article IV consultation, a standard mandatory review of member countries’ economic policies and performance.

    Per Antoshin’s presentation, SVG’s economic growth cooled to 3.7% in 2025, as the sharp post-pandemic tourism recovery lost momentum. Even so, key sectors including international tourism and large-scale infrastructure construction continued to post solid gains over the year.

    Looking ahead, the IMF projects growth will slow further across 2026 and 2027, dragged down by three key headwinds: elevated global oil prices, a weaker overall global economic outlook, and a normalization of construction activity after recent peak investment. Over the medium term, growth is expected to stabilize at around 2.7% annually.

    Inflation, which has been kept largely contained in recent years, is set to climb sharply in the near term, driven by commodity price disruptions stemming from the ongoing Middle East war. Antoshin projected headline inflation will reach 2.9% by the end of 2026 before easing back to a stable 2% target in subsequent years.

    On the external front, SVG continues to grapple with a wide current account deficit, which expanded to 20% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2025. Despite robust growth in tourism revenue, the deficit grew driven by heavy volumes of construction-related imports and increased repatriation of profits by foreign-owned hotel operators, the IMF found. The gap is projected to remain elevated over the medium term without targeted policy adjustments.

    Despite these near-term headwinds, Antoshin outlined clear pathways for SVG to boost its long-term potential growth, centered on three core priorities: upgrading the national business climate, closing workforce skill gaps, and accelerating the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

    Of these, the shift to utility-scale solar energy stands out as an immediate high-impact opportunity, Antoshin argued. Replacing the country’s aging diesel-powered electricity generators with solar infrastructure would sharply cut energy costs for both households and businesses, while also strengthening SVG’s resilience to the volatile global oil price swings that are currently driving inflation. He added that the transition would also boost economic competitiveness and create new employment opportunities, particularly for women. To unlock this development, however, Antoshin noted that SVG must first update its outdated national electricity legislation to create clear pathways for private and public solar energy development.

    The IMF also welcomed the SVG government’s existing commitments to address widespread skill mismatches across the labor force, particularly among young people, through targeted education and labor market reforms. Proposed changes include expanding vocational training programs, updating national education curricula to align with private sector needs, and delivering industry-specific training for growing sectors like tourism and construction. Antoshin noted that the government has already begun rolling out targeted training programs to match emerging employer demand, and adding expanded affordable childcare support would further boost female labor force participation to support broader growth.

    Streamlining the overall business environment to support private sector expansion is another core pillar of long-term growth strategy, the IMF said. Reforms including cutting red tape for business registration and licensing, simplifying the national tax code, and expanding access to digital government services would lower barriers for new firms entering the market and support the expansion of existing businesses. Antoshin also highlighted the government’s ongoing initiatives to support innovation, including the development of new research hubs, as a positive step that will lift long-term national productivity.

    Given SVG’s position as a small island developing state highly vulnerable to the growing frequency and intensity of climate-driven natural disasters, Antoshin emphasized that continued investment in disaster preparedness is critical to reducing long-term fiscal risks and protecting vulnerable communities. He praised SVG’s existing three-layered natural disaster insurance framework, noting it aligns fully with prior IMF policy advice. Additional priorities include updating national natural disaster risk assessments, tightening land use planning regulations, and strengthening compliance with updated building codes to make new and existing infrastructure more disaster-resistant.

    Speaking ahead of Antoshin at the briefing, Prime Minister Friday confirmed he was aware of the IMF’s findings and reiterated his administration’s commitment to transparent, accountable governance. The New Democratic Party administration has held office for five months as of the briefing, and Friday framed the publication of the IMF’s assessment and the open press conference as part of a broader commitment to engaging the public on critical economic issues.

    “We made a commitment to the people of this country that we would govern transparently, approach every challenge with professionalism and seriousness, and take the public into our confidence on every major decision we make,” Friday said. “Today’s discussion is part of that ongoing process of keeping citizens informed on issues that, while sometimes technical, directly impact everyday lives, and require honest, pragmatic action.”

    Friday also noted the forecast is being released just weeks ahead of the Atlantic hurricane season, coming as neighboring Dominica continues to recover from severe flooding caused by a recent trough system. The extreme weather event, he said, is a stark reminder of the persistent climate risks the entire Caribbean region faces.