Bridgetown. Despite a heartening flurry of late bookings this winter season, Barbados’ hoteliers may not be smiling too broadly, as The Nation daily reported. Reduced business is affecting top class properties as well as the much less pricey apartments, asserted the newspaper that looked into the issue. To analyze the situation The Nation listed the properties as A, B, C and D.

Santo Domingo._ The Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC) reports that unemployment in the Dominican Republic increased to 15%, up from 13.9% in 2000. In its Preliminary Overview of the Economies of Latin America and the Caribbean 2001, the organization attributes the decline to the slowdown in the Dominican economy and the implementation of a new tax reform package in January.

BASSETERRE._ St. Kitts and Nevis has prepared for tough times in the new year, with a budget which Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas says took into account the uncertainties of the global economic situation. The EC$357.7 million (US$132.29) budget package presented last month envisaged a lessening in government expenditure.