Archive for January, 2019
According to the Tax Agency (DGII), as of 7 January 2019, 13% of the vehicle park had yet to renew the permission for a vehicle to be on the road, or its “marbete”. According to the DGII, some 170,000 vehicle owners still needed to purchase the sticker for their vehicles.
The DGII reports receiving revenues for the issuing of marbetes of RD$1.9billion as of Monday, 7 January 2019, with an estimated RD$2.14 billion pending to be paid.
Those who do not pay by the cut-off date will have to pay a fine of RD$1,500. As of 8 January 2019, vehicles that do not display the sticker may be impounded by Digesett agents (the former Amet).
The renewal process started on 1 October 2018. Those vehicles five years old or less pay RD$3,000 and those over five years old pay RD$1,500.
Source: DR1, Eldia
Jan 10, 2019
Omega considered the most powerful locomotive of the entertainment industry in the country, who is capable of success on the national and international musical arenas, now chooses to perform for the Puerto Plata fans.
Thousands of his followers and fans from all over the world are enthusiastic about his upcoming performance on Saturday, January 26th, in the city of Puerto Plata where hotels begin receiving reservations from all over the country and other continents.
Starting today (Jan 6), the tickets are already on sale at Todo Tickets, José Luis Supermarkets, the restaurants on the Puerto Plata pier, the Amphitheater Box Office and at Express Tickets.
There will be a limited pre-sale with special prices for the amphitheater, Vip, Special Guest, and Fron Stege sections, the prices of the different sections are RD $ 300.00, RD $ 500.00, RD $ 1,000.00, RD $ 2,000.00, and for Fron Stage in special seats call Todo Tickets.
Many artists who are friends of Omega, both nationally and internationally, are showing an interest to be at the concert on that great night, where a special team is working on design with cutting edge technology in lights and sound effects.
Mega Omega has the support of the Lifestyle group and the Ministry of Tourism, in addition to several country tour operators who are organizing a package of all-inclusive, from transport, concert ticket, lodging and many other attractions.
Source: Puerto Plata Digital
Jan 7, 2019
The Central Bank has released a report with a glowing picture of the Dominican economy for 2018. Central Bank Governor Hector Valdez Albizu noted that the results of the latest figures show that the DR is the leading economy in Latin America as far as growth is concerned.
The Central Bank says the economy should close at around 7% GDP growth. The aforementioned value, estimated by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), is higher than the original estimated goal of five percent growth.
Dynamic sectors of the economy leading the growth are communications (11%), construction (10.6%), export free zones (9.1%), health (8.8%), commerce 8.5%, financial services (7.9%), sector that is most driving the expansion of the economy with 12% followed by construction with (10.6%), commerce (8.9%) and farming (6.5%), warehousing and transport (6.5%), domestic manufacturing (6%), energy and water (5.7%), hotels & restaurants (5.6%), among others.
Peso depreciation was kept under control with the exchange rate of 50.12 pesos for one dollar comparative to the estimated 50.17 to the dollar. Inflation is expected to end the year at 1.3%.
The Central Bank reports that Gross International Reserves (hard currencies), as of 26 December 2018 were US$7.2 billion, which equals about four months worth of imports.
Central Bank governor Valdez Albizu presented the report at an assembly of the top ranking officers of the bank. He detailed that according to preliminary numbers from the Monthly Economic Activity Index, the growth is the result of the 6.9% performance from January through September and a 7.1% performance in the last quarter of the year. The report noted that communications, construction and the free zones were all double-digit contributors to the growth, but health, commerce and financial services were all above the 7% level.
Another look at the economic performance by Pavel Isa Contreras is a bit more somber, but still highlights the solid GDP performance of the economy. Isa Contreras said growth had been forecasted to be between an optimistic 5.5% and a less positive 5.0% for the year, back in January. Isa Contreras says that a GDP growth of 6.5% is most likely. He sees just an 11.1% jobless rate among the economically active population. This is a continuation of a downward trend that began in 2014.
Regarding inflation and the exchange rate, Isa Contreras says that with the available data, he feels that inflation will not top 2% for the year.
Isa Contreras says that his analysis shows that there are three areas that contributed to the stable economy outcome: the tumble in oil prices since October; the containment by the Central Bank of the exchange rates that in turn allowed for the slow inflation and lesser devaluation of the Dominican peso and the Central Bank’s restrictive monetary policy. This is something Isa Contreras attributes to the tight reins the bank has on liquidity, as seen in the M1 (money in circulation) that in October was some RD$15 billion less than in June.
However, as an astute observer, the economist notes that a lot of all of this is due to maneuvers by the Central Bank involving more debt. The total debt of the Central Bank was pegged at RD$559 billion, more than RD$78.6 billion more than in 2017 and RD$85.7 billion more than in September of this year. As a result, interest rates are up.
Source: DR1, Bancentral
Jan 6, 2019
The transportation secretary of the Social Christian Reformist Party (PRSC), Mario Diaz demanded to know just what the government is doing with the money it collects from traffic fines. He called for Franchesca de los Santos, the head of the National Traffic Institute (Intrant), to explain where the money is used.
He noted that the Law 63-17 allots 75% of the funds generated by traffic fines to the Attorney General’s Office, and the remaining 25% to fund Intrant.
Despite the passing of the new transit and traffic law in 2017, the Intrant has yet to file the draft for the implementation of the ruling that would put in effect the new regulations contemplated in the law. As a result, most of the efforts of the new agency are still in the planning stage.
Source: DR1, Elnacional
Jan 6, 2019
The Center for Emergency Operations said 17 persons died over the Christmas holidays (24, 25 December 2018) in traffic accidents, of which in 16 of these a motorcyclist was involved. This is similar to the 15 deaths reported in 2017. The Center for Emergency Operations coordinated a major national effort for road safety over the holidays. With the participation of 39,233 people including volunteers, paramedics, medics, military and rescue specialists that worked from Sunday, 23 December through Christmas Day.
Source: DR1, Elnacional
Jan 6, 2019
Presidents Trump and Medina have something in common: both have deployed thousands of troops on their country’s border. President Danilo Medina has authorized the stationing of 7,000 Dominican military personnel on the border with Haiti in an effort to halt illegal immigration. Some 600 new troops were dispatched to the border along with helicopters, speedboats to patrol the coastlines, 15 sturdy, off-road motorcycles to patrol the most remote areas, and all-terrain vehicles.
As reported by the government, the new deployment of military personnel supplements the 6,400 armed service men and women already stationed along the Haitian border since early March 2018. The plan called “The Joint Interagency Task Force ‘Frontier Fence’ is charged with stemming the illegal flow of persons, firearms, controlled substances and contraband across the border.
Source: DR1, DiarioLibre
Jan 6, 2019
President Danilo Medina backed politicians who sought to divide the city of Santiago into two municipalities under two city governments. Medina and signed Law 65-18 that creates Santiago Oeste (Santiago West). The bill had met with widespread opposition by business, community, development, religious entities and the incumbent Santiago mayor that criticized the split saying it is uncalled for in regional plans and will just create more wasteful spending and would not contribute to problem solving. The law says that the new authorities for the municipal district are to be elected in the 2020 general election.
Recently, Santiago city mayor Abel Martinez had expressed he was backing the aspirations of former President Leonel Fernandez to run for a return to the presidency in 2020. Fernandez is seen as President Danilo Medina’s main obstacle in the case he decides to seek a third term.
Areas that will now fall in the new municipal district are:
La Parada 7, San Miguel, El Progreso; Cienfuegos Central, La Emboscada, Monte Rico, Nuevo Milenio, Brisa del Canal II, Barrio Duarte I, Barrio Duarte II, Barrio Duarte III, Los Rieles, La Paz, Ingenio Abajo, Pinar del Río, Mejía, San Lorenzo, Cerro de San Lorenzo, El Nazareno, Llanos del Ingenio. Also Ingenio Arriba, Reparto Villa Fe, La Unión, La Unión II, Monte Rico apartment buildings, Mella II, Cerro de Don Juan, La Torre del Mella I, Mella I apartments, Villa de San Lorenzo, El Fondo de la Botella, Monte Bonito, El Semillero I. Don Jaime, Alegría, Sector Ocho, El Tabaco, San Antonio, ensanche San Lorenzo, Valle Bonito, Alto Bonito, among others.
Source: DR1, Presidencia
Jan 6, 2019
Recently, Nick Hard, a tennis talent from Sosúa, turned 18. As a junior player (under 18 years) he achieved 16th place in the ATP ranking. He now plays with the professionals who stand in the ranking between 700 and 300. Now he is already in 536th place after he has won another tournament in Santo Domingo. Sunday afternoon, December 30, he played demonstration games at the tennis court of Playa Chiquita in Sosúa.
Besides Nick Hard, also William Kirkman, Andrea Segarelli and Melvin Baez participated. An there were also some excellent young tennis talents participating in the event. Among others, there was a fantastic girl of 11 years and a boy of 13 years old, both from Russia, who really played very strong.
Nick Hard is a son of a Luxembourg father and Dominican mother and he is seen as the up and coming tennis talent for the Dominican Republic. Lucky for him, he has found some sponsors in Santo Domingo because the tennis sport is very expensive. Thanks to this sponsorship, he can go on training internship in the USA. He will soon play three professional tournaments in Florida. Then followed by a European tour in the summer where he will participate in a number of tennis tournaments. Nick also hopes to meet Roger Federer in Europe, because Federer is his hero.
Source: Sosua News
Jan 1, 2019
They apprehended a Canadian national for attempting to have sex with a seven-year-old girl, with the consent of her father, who is also detained.
According to the police note, the police officers on duty in the municipality of Sosúa, in this province, detained Yvon Joseph Ghislain Gaudet, 69, and the father of the minor, whose name is omitted to protect her identity.
The detention of the foreigner occurred in a hotel located in Guatemala Street of the Sosúa batey, where he tried to commit the sexual crime, while the father of the girl was arrested in another hotel in the same locality.
The preliminary report of the fact says that the father of the minor had taken her to the Canadian’s room so that he had intimate relations with his daughter.
The National Police specified that the detainees are in control of the Public Ministry of Sosúa for the corresponding legal purposes.
Source: Noticiassin
Jan 1, 2019
