Daily Archives: June 7, 2017

Playing Inside Kanye West's 40th Birthday in Bahamas With Kim Kardashian and Their Kids: 'No Work or Social Media'

"No More Parties in L.A." for Kanye. Even for his 40th birthday!

A source close to Kanye West and wife Kim Kardashian West tells ET that the couple "had a great time on vacation in Baker's Bay [on the island of Great Guana Cay in the Bahamas] for his birthday."

MORE: Kim Kardashian Shares Sweet New Photo of Son Saint With Her Grandmother M.J.

"They spent six days at a private home and were able to go totally off the map," the source adds. "No work or social media, it's just what their family needed. Kanye brought his friend, Don Crowley, along with his family. The children had a great time. They hung around at the pool most of the day."

The source also tells ET that they stayed at the home of Mike Meldman, the third owner of Casamigos Tequila with Rande Gerber and George Clooney. Kim has stayed at the locale before, as well as sister Kourtney Kardashian.

EXCLUSIVE: How Kim Kardashian and Kanye West Have Changed Since Robbery and Hospitalization

Kanye officially turns 40 on Thursday, and Kim's only posts leading up to the big day so far have been a throwback of her and her husband, aptly captioned, "Almost your birthday," as well as a sweet plane pic with the couples children, 3-year-old North and 18-month-old Saint, apparently leaving the family birthday-cation.

Almost your birthday

A post shared by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Jun 6, 2017 at 10:05pm PDT

A post shared by Kim Kardashian West (@kimkardashian) on Jun 6, 2017 at 4:30pm PDT

Kanye has taken a sabbatical from public events in the wake of his and Kim's traumatic past year, which included his wife being robbed at gunpoint in Paris, as well as his hospitalization shortly thereafter. So it's no surprise that this birthday was decidedly more low-key. It's a stark contrast to past birthday's Kim has thrown the rapper, such as his 38th, where Kim rented out Staples Center in Los Angeles, organizing a star-studded pickup basketball game that included John Legend, Justin Bieber, and several NBA stars -- from James Harden, to Kobe Bryant, to Magic Johnson and more.

MORE: Kanye West Showered With 39th Birthday Praise by His Kardashian-Jenner Family -- See All the Love for Yeezy!

As fun as that must have been, we have to imagine a tropical getaway with his wife and two young children made his 40th that much more special!

Happy birthday, Kanye!

Watch the video below for more on the couple's low-key year.

Read more here:

Inside Kanye West's 40th Birthday in Bahamas With Kim Kardashian and Their Kids: 'No Work or Social Media' - Entertainment Tonight

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamas has been ranked among the top six nations in the Latin American and Caribbean region for the development of data centres, although high electricity costs remain a major obstacle to further growth.

An Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) report, titled Data Centres and Broadband for sustainable economic and social development, ranked the Bahamas as the Caribbeans leader in developing such facilities, placing it alongside regional giants such as Brazil and Argentina.

Using its own Data Centre Development Index (DCDI), the report said: According to DCDI, the top seven Latin American and Caribbean countries for the construction of data centres are Argentina, the Bahamas, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Panama and Uruguay. Unsurprisingly, recent data centre investments are occurring in most of these countries.

Data centres are used to store, manage and distribute data on behalf of hundreds of companies, centralising their information technology (IT) operations and equipment. They are built to withstand natural disasters, and provide security against fire and theft, and are seen as a vital cog in developing knowledge-based economies - a key target for the Bahamas.

Given the increasing role IT is playing in economies and societies, the IDB report said: Data centres, where information is stored and processed, are essential for the development of the ICT ecosystem.

The speed of networks, security of the critical infrastructure and information, and the quality of public services, data and systems all depend on the availability and quality of data centres. Due to their vital role, the design and development of these centres is a priority for both private stakeholders and governments in Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries.

The report indicates that the Bahamas has a strong foundation on which to build a knowledge-based economy, ranking the Bahamas among six of 26 Latin American and Caribbean countries who show very high values for economic development and connectivity.

Argentina, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay have very high levels of fundamental infrastructure, while the Bahamas and Panama show moderate levels of that pillar, the IDB report and its authors state.

The level of data centre infrastructure is very high for Panama, high for the Bahamas, Chile and Uruguay, moderate for Argentina, and low for Brazil. Finally, values for the CIP (Critical Protection Infrastructure) pillar are very high for Bahamas, Brazil, Chile, and Uruguay, high for Argentina, and low for Panama.

Assessed on five criteria, the Bahamas was ranked fourth out of 26 for data centre development, behind only Uruguay, Chile and Brazil, but ahead of Argentina, Panama, Costa Rica and all Caribbean rivals.

This nations weakness was identified as the relatively high cost of electricity, given that data centres and communications networks require significant amounts of energy to operate. Operational costs as a percentage of communications company revenue was also high in the Bahamas.

Read more:

Bahamas Tops Caribbean On Data Centre Expansion - Bahamas Tribune

Tournament Website

PHILADELPHIA Get out your sunblock, and book your flights the University of Pennsylvania womens basketball team is heading to the Bahamas! The 2016 and 2017 Ivy League Champions will play two games and celebrate Thanksgiving in the Caribbean during the 2017-18 season.

Penn will take on Georgia Tech and either Baylor or Missouri State as part of the 2017 Junkanoo Jam annual tournament. Penn will take on the Yellow Jackets in the opening round and will play one additional game as part of the event. Game dates and times are to be determined.

Under head coach Mike McLaughlin, the Quakers have made these destination trips a habit. Last season, the Quakers spent New Years Eve in Southern California where they posted two wins over UC Riverside and CSU Northridge to ring in the New Year. The Red and Blue have also competed in Italy, Hawaii, Miami, San Diego and Chicago in recent seasons.

"Our players hear me say it a lot, but it is true," McLaughlin said. "Their time as a student-athlete at Penn is all about the experience. We play to win no matter where we go, but it's not always just about basketball. These are trips, moments and games that they will remember their entire lives, and that's what these four years are truly about - strengthening friendships and making memories that will last a lifetime."

This will be the program's first trip to the Bahamas and more details on this trip will be available in the coming months. A complete 2017-18 schedule will be announced late this summer.

#FightOnPenn

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Bahamas Bound! Women's Basketball Set for Thanksgiving Caribbean Tournament - Penn Athletics

ByNEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Moodys yesterday expressed alarm at the significantly worse fiscal deteriorationunveiled by the Governments 2017-2018 Budget, although its lead analyst indicated no junk downgrade for the Bahamas is imminent.

The credit rating agency, clearly taken aback by the Minnis administrations much-revisedfiscal forecasts, warned the global markets that its planned $722 million borrowing showed this nations fiscal strength was much weaker than it had bargained for.

Forced by surprise to adjust its own fiscal forecasts, Moodys wrote-off its previous projection that the Bahamas direct government debt-to-GDP ratio would stabilise below 70 per cent, instead estimatingthat this will continue to climb through the 2019-2020 fiscal year - in contrast with the Governments forecast that it will peak near 73 per cent in 2017-2018

Warning that the Bahamas debt-to-GDP ratio was the highest for any country it had rated one notch above so-called junk status, Moodys said this nation was seeking to achieve fiscal consolidation from a more negative starting-off point - especially given its vulnerability to major hurricanes in the absence of funding reserves to cover damages.

The Budget indicates that the Bahamas fiscal outlook is significantly worse than what we had incorporated into our current projections, the credit rating agency said. Revised government estimates point to a higher deficit for fiscal 2017, and deficits (rather than surpluses) in the coming years.

Wider, serial deficits will lead to rising debt and delayed debt stabilisation. Whereas we previously had expected that debt would stabilise this year, we now forecast that debt-to-GDP will rise until 2019, peaking above 70per centof GDP. The combination of significantly worse fiscal deterioration and delayed stabilisation of debt metrics puts downward pressure on the Bahamas credit profile.

Moodys said the new governmentsestimate of a $500 million deficit for the 2016-2017 fiscal year included revenue underperformance and expenditure slippage under the former Christie administration, as well as the impact from Hurricane Matthew.

The New York-based rating agency noted that the current fiscal years deficit was equivalent to 5.5 per cent of Bahamian economic output (GDP), and contrasted this with both the $350 million (3.8 per cent of GDP) and $100 million (1.1 per cent of GDP) estimates given by the previous government - the former as recently as March 2017.

Pointing to the obvious contrasts and contradictions between the two governments estimates, Moodys added: Through the first eight months of fiscal 2017, the deficit had reached $290 million, implying a 72per centwidening of the deficit to match the FNMs estimate in the past four months.

Authorities said that borrowing plans for fiscal 2018 will total $722 million (7.8per centof GDP) to cover unfunded spending committed in fiscal 2017, and the expected deficit in fiscal 2018. This indicates that the Bahamas fiscal position is much weaker than we had previously expected, even after accounting for the slippage caused by Hurricane Matthew.

Consequently, we no longer expect the Bahamas debt levels, which had already climbed to 67.3per cebtof GDP from 48 per centof GDP during the past five years, to stabilisebelow 70per centof GDP. Instead, we expect that they will rise at least through fiscal 2019. At these levels, the Bahamas debt-to-GDP ratio will be the highest for an emerging market sovereign rated Baa.

Moodys also described the Governments deficit reduction, and fiscal consolidation targets, as somewhat optimistic given the Bahamas four consecutive years of zero or negative economic growth.

It added: Although fiscal consolidation efforts, including boosting revenues through higher tax compliance and measures to rein in expenditures, have the potential to stabilise the debt trend, the Budget communication clearly points to a more negative starting-off point.

Additionally, there remain downside risks owing to a still-weak, albeit recovering, economy and the Bahamas susceptibility to climate-related events, such as hurricanes, that imply a fiscal cost in the absence of buffers.

The Budget envisions a somewhat optimistic deficit reduction path through fiscal 2020 without material changes to current policy, particularly in a still weak economic environment, Moodys continued.

The new government forecasts a deficit of $322 million (3.4per centof GDP) in fiscal 2018, and deficits of around 2.3per centof GDP in fiscal 2019 and 1.1per centof GDP in fiscal 2020. This compares with previous official estimates of a small deficit of $28 million (0.3per centof GDP) in fiscal 2018 and surpluses beginning in fiscal 2019.

Theonly good news from the Bahamas perspective is that it retained its investment-grade rating with Moodys - at least for the moment.

Renzo Marino, the Moodys assistant vice-president, and lead country analyst for the Bahamas, told Tribune Business that while the 2017-2018 Budgets contents were a credit negative for this nation, it wanted to assess the bigger picture as it related to economic growth and fiscal reforms before taking any rating-related action.

At this stage, the fact the Government sees the fiscal strength is weaker is definitely a credit negative from our perspective, he said in an interview with this newspaper. [But] we still want to assess a few things.

Looking at the Budget document and the projections put there, we want to wait and see how the economy performed last year to give us an idea of what future growth in 2017-2018 might be, especially in the context of Baha Mar and the boost thats expected to provide to the economy, and how this will affect the debt metrics of the Government. Based on that, well review the rating of the Bahamas.

Moodys currently rates the Bahamas sovereign creditworthiness at Baa3with a stable outlook, keeping it at one notch above junk status following a previous downgrade in August 2016.

Unlike Standard & Poors (S&P), which downgraded the Bahamas to junk earlier this year, Moodys has taken more of a glass half-full position on the Bahamas and given it time to get its economic and fiscal house in order.

That approach, though, may have been jeopardised by the suddenness, and magnitude, of the correction to the Governments fiscal estimates, which drag out the fiscal consolidation process amid an ever-increasing national debt which - when the liabilities of the public corporations are factored in - is now around 80 per cent of GDP or four-quarters of the Bahamas total annual economic output.

Mr Merino saidthat following last Augusts downgrade, Moodys had expected both the Bahamian economy to start recovering from years of weak performance and the Governments debt to show signs of medium-term stabilisation.

Even allowing for Matthews impact, the rating agency had still expected the debt-to-GDP ratio to peak this year - then stabilise - until last weeks Budget.

The incoming government presented a worse fiscal situation for the Government, Mr Merino said. One of the take aways from the communication, and this is the key, is that without any measures the debt will continue to rise for the next two to three years.

Moodys acknowledged the fiscal measures outlined in the 2017-2018 Budget, saying: The FNM government has stated that over the coming months it will perform a review of revenues and expenditures to identify opportunities for greater fiscal consolidation than what the Budget presented. Authorities also will seek to introduce fiscal responsibility legislation, strengthen procurement processes and increase overall fiscal transparency.

Mr Merino said Moodys understood that the Government would assess potential measures to reduce spending and enhance revenues within the next 90 days, and wanted to discuss these and other aspects of the Minnis administrations plans when it made its annual summer visit to Nassau.

The Moodys analysts comments underscore how theGovernment needs to restore trust in its fiscal credibility, with thenine-figure gap between the Minnis administrations projections and those of the prior government threatening to undermine business, investor and consumer confidence - as well as that of thecredit rating agencies - unless the differences were properly explained.

The Government, in unveiling the 2017-2018 Budget, revealed that the upcoming years deficit is projected to be $323 million - an almost $300 million increase from the $28 million in red ink that was forecast by the Christie administration just 12 months ago.

Raising further questions about the former governments fiscal forecasting, the deficit for the current 2016-2017 fiscal year isnow estimated to be $500 million - a five-fold increase upon the $100 million that was forecast last May, and $150 million more than the mid-year Budget estimate - given just three months ago in March.

While Hurricane Matthewplayed arole in the deficit growing 400 per cent beyond projections, the former government was accused ofexacerbating the storms impact by entering into unfunded spending commitments that had created a $300 million government payables backlog.

Based on Moodys comments yesterday, K P Turnquest, the minister of finance, was right to be concerned about how the rating agencies would react to the 2017-2018 Budget. Much now hinges on whether the Government can provide a convincing explanation when it visits.

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Moody'S Gives Alarm On 'Much Weaker' Bahamas - Bahamas Tribune

President Donald Trump speaks about the US role in the Paris climate change accord on Thursday, June 1, in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. Photo: Andrew Harnik/AP

THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has expressed The Bahamas concern regarding the announced withdrawal of the United States from the Paris Agreement on climate change.

The ministry noted that The Bahamas remains committed to the climate accord.

While each nation must determine its own course on international matters, the prospect of the effects of climate change are particularly significant for low-lying, coastal, small island developing states (SIDS) such as The Bahamas, the very existence of which stands to be adversely impacted by climate change and global warming, a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted.

The Bahamas remains committed to the Paris Agreement which was signed by 195 parties and ratified by 146 countries plus the European Union, and its aspiration to reduce risk to economies and lives everywhere, and to build a secure and sustainable world.

The Bahamas will continue to work with its partners in the context of the Paris Agreement, as well as its neighbours in the United States in ongoing efforts to mitigate the long-term effects of global weather on states in the region, the statement also noted.

Last Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced he was withdrawing America from the Paris Agreement, which some critics see as a blow to the worldwide effort to counter global warming.

Were getting out, Mr Trump said Thursday at the White House. And we will start to renegotiate and well see if theres a better deal. If we can, great. If we cant, thats fine.

The decision was widely denounced by American politicians, pundits and leaders from around the world.

Former US President Barack Obama also criticised the move.

The nations that remain in the Paris Agreement will be the nations that reap the benefits in jobs and industries created, Mr Obama noted in a statement. I believe the United States of America should be at the front of the pack. But even in the absence of American leadership; even as this administration joins a small handful of nations that reject the future; Im confident that our states, cities, and businesses will step up.

In May 2015, then Prime Minister Perry Christie told Parliament that with 80 per cent of The Bahamas land mass within one metre of sea level, climate change was a growing threat.

Our situation is rendered especially urgent in the face of information that ocean acidification, sea surface temperatures and sea levels are already rising, he said.

These processes, particularly sea-level rise, will therefore irreversibly change the geography and ecology of many coastal states and territories. It has been projected that responding to these factors can have particularly disastrous consequences, causing a perpetual recession in each of the Caricom member states for a significant period as our infrastructure, built environment, settlements and economic well-being are concentrated in coastal areas prone to flooding and inundation.

The regions challenge associated with the ongoing climate change negotiations is that even if the goal to limit global warming to 1.5 or 2(degrees Celsius) is achieved, the Caribbean will experience severe adverse impacts for which stronger programmes of adaptation would have to be implemented, Mr Christie said at the time.

America joined Nicaragua and Syria as the only nations that did not sign the Paris Agreement.

See the rest here:

Bahamas Alarm At Us Withdrawal From Paris Climate Change Deal - Bahamas Tribune