Dear Member, In order to assess your views on the state of your business and the impact of the newly introduced Value Added Tax on your business, we have attached the Business Performance Survey for completion. We are aware of your busy schedule but do hope that you will spare a few minutes to respond as we assess the current state of business. Thank you for your usual cooperation as we work towards Making it Easier to do Business in St. Lucia. Sincerely Sumitra Jagroop-Leo Membership Development Officer St Lucia Chamber of Commerce Industry and Agriculture American Drywall Building Vide Boutielle P.O. Box 482 Castries Tel: (758) 452 3165 Fax: (758) 453 6907 email: info@stluciachamber.org website: www.stluciachamber.org

1.
ST.
LUCIA
CHAMBER
OF
COMMERCE
BUSINESS
PERFORMANCE
SURVEY
JULY
2012
to
DECEMBER
2012
In
response
to
calls
from
members
and
other
public
sector
institutions
the
Chamber
is
pleased
to
reintroduce
its
Business
Performance
Survey.
The
survey
is
meant
to
assess
members’
views
on
the
state
of
their
business
and
the
impact
of
the
newly
introduced
Value
Added
Tax
on
their
business.
This
will
permit
us
to
get
a
more
rapid
assessment
of
the
state
of
Business
in
St.
Lucia.
Your
cooperation
is
required
in
completing
this
survey
and
returning
it
as
soon
as
possible
to
the
Chamber.
Fax
#
453-­‐6907
or
Email:
info@stluciachamber.org.
Thank
you
for
your
speedy
response.
(Please
place
the
appropriate
number
in
the
boxes
provided).
1.
Sector
1.
Agriculture
4.
Distribution
7.
Retail
2.
Tourism
5.
Construction
8.
Insurance
3.
Manufacturing
6.
Banking
&
Finance
9.
Other
Services
2. How
would
you
assess
your
sales
over
the
following
periods?
A.
July
to
December
2012
compared
to
Jan
to
June
2012
B.
July
to
December
2012
compared
to
July
to
Dec
2011
Options:
1.
Less
than
5%
increase
4.
Less
than
5%
decrease
2.
Between
5%
and
10%
increase
5.
Between
5%
and
10%
decrease
3.
Over
10%
increase
6.
Over
10%
decrease
3.
How
would
you
assess
Actual
Sales
in
the
period
July
to
December
2012
compared
to
Projected
Sales
for
the
same
period
July
to
December
2012?
Options:
1.
Actual
sales
were
less
than
10%
higher
4.
Actual
sales
were
less
than
10%
lower
2.
Actual
sales
were
between
10%
and
20%
higher
5.
Actual
sales
were
between
10%
and
20%
lower
3.
Actual
sales
were
over
20%
higher
6.
Actual
sales
were
over
20%
lower
4.
What
is
your
business
forecast
for
the
first
six
months
of
the
year
2013?
Options:
1.
Decline
of
less
than
5%
5.
Growth
of
between
5%
and
10%
2.
Decline
of
between
5%
and
10%
6.
Growth
of
over
10%
3.
Decline
of
over
10%
7.
No
Change
4.
Growth
of
less
than
5%
5.
What
is
your
business
forecast
for
the
last
six
months
of
the
year
2013?
Options:
1.
Decline
of
less
than
5%
5.
Growth
of
between
5%
and
10%
2.
Decline
of
between
5%
and
10%
6.
Growth
of
over
10%
3.
Decline
of
over
10%
7.
No
Change
4.
Growth
of
less
than
5%
URGENT

2.
6.
How
would
you
assess
the
employment
situation
in
your
organization
over
the
last
six
months?
7.
What
changes
do
you
anticipate
in
employment
for
the
next
six
months?
Options:
(for
question
5
and
6)
1.
Increase
2.
Decrease
3.
No.
Change
8.
Prioritize
the
issues
listed
below
for
Chamber
actions
this
year
2012.
Economy
Crime
Low
Productivity
Poor
Work
Ethic
Legislative
Reformation
Value
Added
Tax
Reform
9.
What
is
the
major
issue
confronting
your
sector?
___________________________________________________________________________________________
10.
How
would
you
assess
prospects
for
economic
growth
for
the
year
2013?
A.
In
your
sector
B.
In
the
economy
as
a
whole
Options:
1.
Excellent
2.
Fair
3.
Poor
4.
Don’t
Know
11.
SPECIAL
FOCUS
SECTION
How
has
the
newly
implemented
Value
Added
Tax
affected
your
conduct
of
Business?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
What
changes
would
you
recommend
that
would
make
the
tax
more
business
friendly?
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
What
recommendations
would
you
make
to
Government
to
improve
the
prospects
of
the
Economy?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________