24 Sep 2007

Gloomy predictions for American Samoa if canneries close

10:46 am on 24 September 2007

A preliminary study into what might happen if American Samoa's tuna canneries closed down has produced gloomy figures.

In a report to the local Chamber of Commerce, Malcolm McPhee and Lewis Wolman, say there is an increasing likelihood the canneries could leave.

They say this is because many of the federal incentives which brought the canneries to the territory no longer exist.

Lewis Wolman says 52 percent of the jobs in the territory would go if Star Kist and Samoa Packing left.

"The change in the dollars circulating in the economy would not fall by 52 percent because of a varieity of reasons. The estimate of the dollars that would no longer be circulating in the economy because the canneries left would be closer to 35 percent. Maybe 52 percent of people unemployed but we have only lost 35 percent of the dollars that are circulating in the economy - the other two thirds comes from the Federal Government."