Bermuda's workers boosted their earning potential across the board to reflect the country's above four percent inflation rate fuelled by an increased spending power.

The total employee income for international business led the way, rising to its highest ever level of $179.6 million for the second quarter of this year, representing a increase of 32.2 percent of 2006's second quarter total of $135.9 million, while hotels and restaurants paid their staff a total of $43.3 million, up 50.1 percent.

The climb in international business wages was mirrored by the support services of banking, insurance and real estate ($75.4 million) and business services ($72.6 million), with public administration also on a high of $92.5 million.

Meanwhile, private sector construction projects continued to outstrip those of the public sector in terms of estimated value of work put in, peaking at a record all-time high of $72.6 million compared to $6.3 million, down from $8.3 million in the second quarter of 2006, respectively.

Despite being down as a whole where value of new projects started was concerned from $41.9 million last year to $39.3 million in 2007, the building of hotels and guest houses at $35.4 million, up 15.3 percent, and residential properties at $22.8 million, a 15.7 percent increase, proved the trade is still thriving in those areas.

Resort hotels were still the preferred choice of visitors to the Island, despite a slight decrease from $51.4m in the second quarter of 2006 to $46.7 million this quarter, with private homes, small hotels, cottage colonies and clubs, housekeeping accommodations and guest houses picking up the floating trade, up at $22.9 million (1.2 percent), $21.6 million (6.2 percent), $7.1 million (21.6 percent) and $899,000 (23.7 percent) respectively.

This was reflected in the hotel gross receipts, down fractionally by 0.7 percent at $75.9 million from $76.5 million from the 2006 second quarter, and small hotels and cottage colonies picking up the passing trade with increased values of 10.1 percent, up from $12 million to $13.3 million for small hotels and a nine percent rise for cottage colonies from $2 million to $2.2 million.

One area which saw a downturn in expenditure, however, was imports, with all sectors going into reverse, as, most notably, transport equipment and fuels took the biggest hits of minus -25.3 percent from $20.8 million to $15.5 million and minus -20.3 percent from $13.9 million to $11.1 million respectively.

The only sector to experience an upturn in fortunes was finished equipment, up 45.9 percent from $53.3 million to $77.8 million from last year's second quarter to the 2007 equivalent.

Elsewhere, the US continued to be the biggest exporter to Bermuda, with a total of $202.7 million worth of goods passing through customs, while Canada's close proximity with the Island also paid dividends, as their level of exportation rose 8.5 percent to $15.6 million.

Trade with the Caribbean and the UK, however, went into decline, with respective drops of 28.7 percent from $4.3 million to $3.1 million and 16.2 percent from $9.7 million to $8.1 million.