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The local private sector is preparing for higher shipping costs as ongoing tensions in the Middle East disrupt global supply routes.
Director of Vreed-en-Hoop Shore Base Inc., Nicholas Deygoo-Boyer, said shipping companies have begun issuing notices indicating upward pressure on freight rates, insurance premiums, and overall shipping costs, which are likely to be passed on to consumers.
“We’ve already received heads-up notices from the shipping companies that costs will be going up for importing products, and this isn’t profiteering; it’s passing the cost on,” he told the Starting Point podcast on Sunday.
Boyer added that the country’s reliance on imported products leaves businesses vulnerable to external shocks. While the country produces crude oil, it does not control access to refined petroleum products needed locally.
He welcomed President Dr. Irfaan Ali’s recent call for a review of the potential for an in-country oil refinery and strategic reserves of refined products to shield the nation from global market fluctuations.
Despite government interventions to cushion market impacts, Boyer said sustained cost pressures could pose risks to the country’s growing business climate.
“For businesses, our issue is that a lot of us are expanding, which means we have taken on debt to fund new projects, so it is very hard not to pass on the inflation,” he said.
Boyer noted that companies have invested capital in expansion and, while awaiting returns, find it difficult to absorb rising costs without passing them on to consumers.
