Complex tax systems and widespread evasion are distorting investment decisions by companies in Latin America and the Caribbean, reducing the efficiency of markets and preventing governments from investing in infrastructure, education and other key public goods. 

On March 4, 2010, the Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance, presented a federal budget intended to create and pro- tect jobs and stimulate economic growth for Canada. The budget delivers on Year 2 of Canada's Economic Action Plan, confirming $19 billion in federal stimulus spending over the next year, invests in a limited number of new initiatives targeting jobs, innovation and new business investment, and introduces a three-point action plan for returning a bal- anced budget after 2015.

The Caribbean region is still undergoing an economic slowdown driven by the international financial and economic crisis. In this environment interest rates in the region are expected to decline. The actual experience thus far has been that loan and deposit rates across the region have softened but have not fallen as fast as one might have expected given interest rate developments in the USA and the problem of chronic excess liquidity in some countries in the region. For countries in the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) and Guyana the lending and deposit interest rates have remained flat while in the Bahamas these rates have fluctuated.

The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Limited ("Butterfield" or the "Bank") announced today that funds affiliated with The Carlyle Group ("Carlyle"), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce ("CIBC") and other institutional investors have invested $550 million in new Butterfield equity. Other investors include the Wellcome Trust, The Bermuda Government Pension Funds, Julian Robertson, and Goshen Investments, LLC. As part of the transaction, existing Butterfield shareholders will have the right to participate in a rights offering, proceeds of which will be used to buy back some of the newly issued shares.

Lenstec (Barbados) Inc. a medical device company with worldwide manufacturing operations located in Christ Church, Barbados has announced that  the United States Food & Drug Administration has approved its Softec HD^TM intraocular lens (IOL) for sale in the US market.