Hotel occupancy projections for 2010 are the lowest industry veteran Mike Winfield can remember.

The chairman of the Bermuda Hotel Association and the president and chief executive officer of Cambridge Beaches said larger properties had been hit hard by the slump in group bookings.

This had foreced them to compete with smaller properties for individual vacationers, furthersqueezing the market.

"There is some feeling that it is going to recover for 2011, but 2010 will be weak," he said.

"I think there is some feeling that the second half of the year may start to show some better results.

"What we are looking for is a solid enough recovery - meaning an economic recovery, particularly in the US, that frees up people to travel again - at the moment they are simply not making long-term travel plans."

Mr. Winfield said that numbers for yield needed to improve from 2009, with the first quarter already looking very low, but it wouldn't be until prior to the season starting in April that late bookings, as a result of the economic crisis, would indicate what the year held for the tourism industry.

However, Stephen Todd, president of the Chamber of Commerce, was slightly more positive. He said the difficult economy offered some businesses and individuals the opportunity to improve themselves and become more efficient in the coming months.

Mr. Todd said the most important issue was supporting the country's retailers and to protect jobs wherever possible, while striving to attract visitors to the Island to boost tourism.

"Really I am optimistic that we are going to have a challenging year ahead of us," he said.

"However, I also see it an an opportunity for the business community and our residents to think in terms of how we can manage our expenses, develop savings plans for those who don't already have one, and also to continue to support our local retailers and merchants to make sure we can minimise any further loss of jobs and business in the year ahead.

"For every dollar spent in Bermuda it ensures it is helping the local economy and not someone else's economy.

"We also recognise the importance of managing credit and not incurring unnecessary expenses and managing our funds or our individual/family budgets to the best of our ability.

"If we recognise those things then we should have an opportunity with the economy improving in neighbouring countries to hopefully attract visitors to the Island and retain and grow our international business sector in the year to come."

Jeremy Cox, CEO of the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA), said a top goal for the BMA in 2010 was to achieve regulatory equivalence, or mutual recognition, for Bermuda's regulatory framework with major international jurisdictions, while it monitored similar developments in other major markets, particularly within the US.

He said that achieving equivalence for the Island would have major benefits in helping to maintain its competitiveness as a jurisdiction, and will enabling companies to carry out business with international markets on non-discriminatory terms.

"As in previous years, the Authority has set an aggressive policy and framework enhancement agenda for 2010 that will further advance our preparations for equivalency assessments under Solvency II, which we expect will begin in the second half of this year," he said.

Mr. Cox said that the Authority planned to continue to stay abreast of developments and contribute to international standards wherever possible, maintaining regulations that remained both practical and effective for the market and compliant.

"Although there have been encouraging signs of improvement in major economies around the world, full economic recovery will take time," he said.

"While most sectors in Bermuda's financial markets have remained resilient through these difficult conditions, we can expect that there will be further challenges to face due to the prolonged effects of the crisis. The Authority will remain vigilant throughout 2010 and will continue our enhanced supervisory activities accordingly to maintain market stability."

He added that following the challenges experienced last year in the local market that had a direct impact on a number of retail customers, the BMA would place further emphasis on the issue of consumer protection with specific supervisory regime enhancements as well as public outreach activities during 2010.

"Operationally our focus is to ensure that the right team is in place, in regard to both numbers and skill set, to meet our obligations as Bermuda's financial services regulator," he said.

"We have taken into account the valuable feedback received throughout the past year from stakeholders and will continue to challenge ourselves to be a better supervisor, as we strive to not only maintain stability in Bermuda's market but also to protect and enhance the jurisdiction's reputation as a high quality centre for international business."