BPNG’s monetary policy unchanged, Minister wants real estate industry controlled, and debit card usage to double in the next 12 months. Your weekly digest of the latest business news.

The central Bank of PNG has maintained its monetary policy stance by keeping the monthly Kina Facility Rate at 6.25 per cent over the June quarter for 2017. Governor Loi Bakani, in the BPNG Quarterly Economic Bulletin for the June quarter said economic indicators show that domestic economic activity continued at a slow pace during the second quarter of 2017. He said the decline in private sector employment, a drop in global commodity prices and a significant fall in imports were indicative of this slow growth.

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Commerce Minister Wera Mori.

The Minister for Commerce and Industry Wera Mori wants the unregulated real estate industry in the country to be controlled. Mori told The Post Courier middle and low-income Papua New Guineans are resorting to living in unplanned settlements in urban areas because of the high cost of rental accommodation, mainly provided by the private sector.

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Bank South Pacific is expecting to double the number of Visa debit and MasterCard customers to about 80,000 in a year’s time. CEO Robin Fleming says the new bank cards would help in the transition of its customers and merchants to mobile payments in the future.

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The Indian Government plans to partner with the Small and Medium Enterprises Corporation (SMEC) to develop entrepreneurship in PNG’s textile and garment industry. High Commissioner Nagendra Kumar Saxena said India would work with the SMEC to have trainees visit India to experience and be trained in entrepreneurship skills.

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PNG Air Chairman, Murray Woo, says the soft economy and global resources sector downturn has resulted in the airline posting a K34.8 million operating loss in 2016.

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The Autonomous Bougainville Government is hoping it can finally resolve an impasse over financing when President John Momis meets Prime Minister Peter O’Neill next month. RNZI reports Momis said the national government owed Bougainville more than US$276 million dollars in Restoration Development Grants and another US$61 million from the Special Intervention Fund. Port Moresby has challenged the figures but Momis says the national government does accept it owes US$110 million.

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Eng Kwee Tan. Credit: The National

The East New Britain Resource Group has launched a 1000-hectare oil palm estate in the Bitapaka area of Kokopo. CEO Eng Kwee Tan told The National the company could probably develop another 2000 to 3000 hectares through its subsidiary Tzen Niugini Ltd. Tan said his company had so far planted on 60,000 hectares of land, with one fully operational mill and one still under construction.

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Farmers from Central Province will be growing maize for stock feed and silage at the country’s first dairy farm, Ilimo. Innovative Agro Industry Business Development Manager, Gallit Tamir, says farmers in Enga Province sold 30 tonnes of produce to IAI’s farm and she said training has begun for Central farmers to participate in the dairy farm project.

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The collapse of some small businesses has been attributed to the low rate of financial illiteracy among the operators, according to participants at a Bank of PNG microfinance seminar in Goroka. Participant Jeff Ganama said some businesses never survived long enough to reap dividends because of the lack of basic financial knowledge and skills.

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The National Superannuation Fund (NASFUND) says the name of the tallest building in Port Moresby will be known as Kina Haus. NASFUND is undertaking a K50 million refurbishment to bring the building up to global standards as a prime office complex, according to Ian Tarutia, NASFUND’s CEO.

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A free healthcare program funded by Star Mountain Plaza in Port Moresby found that 46 per cent of employees had substandard vision. The vision tests, run by optometrists at the Pacific International Hospital as part of an onsite screening program, examined 136 workers.

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The Pacific Catastrophe Risk Insurance Company, established in 2016 will provide US$45 million dollars in cover for five Pacific Island countries over the coming cyclone season, reports RNZI. The five countries are the Cook Islands, the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.

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Tonga in action against England. Credit: Photosport

And finally, Tonga’s rugby league team is to be presented with royal honours on their return to the country this week. Tonga lost a thrilling World Cup semi-final to England last Saturday but made history during the tournament by being the first tier-two team to beat a tier-one side when they defeated New Zealand. They also attracted the largest crowds at the tournament, with more than 30,000 attending the match in Auckland.