Experts warn of good quality kava exports
With a German court ruling last month to lift a ban against Pacific kava exports, one of the region’s experts on the traditional commodity has warned about the need to monitor and maintain product quality.
Business Intelligence
Goodman Fielder sold
Goldman Fielder’s new owners, Singaporebased Wilmar International and Hong Kong’s First Pacific Company have yet to reveal their plans for their Fiji and Pacific operations. Manufacturer of renowned brands
Fiji cannery partner expands tuna loin contract to Samoa
Fiji’s Pacific Fishing Company – operator of the country’s main tuna cannery – believes it won’t be affected by Bumble Bee’s interest in expanding its tuna loin business to Samoa.
Kina Weakens, Cost of Living Increases in PNG
Papua New Guinea’s economy continued to grow for the 13th consecutive year in 2013 and inflation remained below forecasts. On account of low international commodity prices and high demand for imported goods and
Australian budget cuts affect TV, climate research
The Australian Government led by Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced its first budget on 13 May and took a hit in the polls. The budget saw significant reductions in spending on domestic health, education and welfare
Coconut craze with virgin natural oil
Acoconut oil craze has been circulating beauty parlours around the world for the last couple of years – that it is a miracle answer to skin infections and it’s a natural way to remove makeup. So much so that
New hope for Pacific migrants
On one hand it is cautioning recipient countries in the Pacific to be wary of aid cuts from this year and on the other, the Abbott government is offering an olive branch to semi-skilled workers from around the region to
Pacific exporters pick up branding, supply chain skills
The importance of branding, cost-effective packaging, dealing with logistics and effective supply chain management were topics discussed at a workshop for exporters from Fiji and the Pacific last month. More than 80
Inaugural Pacific business survey launched
Exporters of goods and services from the Pacific Islands were invited last month to share their views on business confidence, the investment climate and export trends. The Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and
We need to seal PACER Plus
The heat is on for Forum member countries in the Pacific to wrap up negotiations and finalise their Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations with Australia and New Zealand, now referred to with the acronym PACER
Imported Item – 2015-07-22 01:15:53
Un-Announced boarding’s of 69 fishing vessels, confiscation and torching of fishing tenders and gear and citings of 6 more boats were the highlights of the recently completed annual Rai Balang maritime
Tonga gets $10m
The World Bank will give approximately US$10 million to support Tonga’s reconstruction and repair of houses for hundreds of families in Ha’apai whose homes were badly damaged or destroyed by Tropical Cyclone
Cooks opt for satellite telecom network
Could the Cook Islands become the next Bangalore of the Pacific? They do have the right technology to begin with but comparative telecommunication prices could prove to be the difference between being a technological
PNG coffee has a c rack at niche market with US$30m package
As exotic gourmet coffee from Papua New Guinea ticked all boxes in an international ranking last month, the World Bank began preparing a US$30 million rescue package to rejuvenate the country’s ailing coffee
Debate over proposed power increase
The proposed 10% increase in electricity tariff in Samoa has received negative responses by the Samoa Chamber of Commerce and the country’s Opposition. While it’s still in its consultation stage, the
Low copra prices prompts Karkar’s bio-fuel diesel
The plummeting world copra prices has forced copra plantation owners to look for other avenues to raise the value of their copra. The average price per metric tonne of copra is now just over US$700, down from US$1,500
PM confident Samoa will do well after LDC
New Year’s Day 2014 will be remembered as the day that Samoa left the group of countries considered the least developed in the world. For many years, Samoa had managed to stay as an LDC for many years. The