00:00Economist Dr. Indira Sajjewan tells the TV6 Morning Edition
00:04there are increasing concerns about a possible global economic downturn,
00:09warning that instability linked to the ongoing tensions involving Iran could affect fuel prices.
00:16Before the war, the price of oil was hovering around $64 a barrel.
00:23Today it is over $110 a barrel.
00:26So it means that the cost of the fuel that's going into our vehicles has increased significantly.
00:32The price of fuel impacts everything because there's transportation,
00:38whether it's shipping, whether it is air freight, all of these things is impacted.
00:45She says the energy sector is underperforming with gas production below capacity,
00:50but new gas field projects could turn that around.
00:54If successful, for example, Shell's Manatee and the Dragon gas field, among others.
01:01Dr. Sajjewan stresses the need to focus on the non-energy sector,
01:06noting a lack of visible diversification policies.
01:09I don't think that we have heard a very clear articulation of that.
01:14We have simply heard the normal regurgitation of things like tourism in a very broad sense,
01:21health tourism, sport tourism, but we need the nuts and bolts of those things
01:27in order to be the attractive place for investors to come.
01:32On wage talks, she acknowledges the government inherited a large debt,
01:37but says transparency with the labor movement is essential as negotiations continue.
01:43For growth to take place, we may need to hold our hands in the present.
01:47And I think the government is, again, not doing a good enough job in terms of
01:52leveling with the population, leveling with labor in terms of what it can afford.
01:57The reality is the government inherited a very bad financial situation.
02:01Nicole M. Romani, TV6 News.
Comments