CABINET NOTES: The Cabinet held discussions with the General Manager of the Antigua Port Authority regarding brisker trade with one of the dynamic economies of the Caribbean—the Dominican Republic.
A trade agreement was signed several years ago; however, the trade between the Dominican Republic and Antigua and Barbuda is fueled in large part by the presence of a significant population of Dominicanos residing in Antigua.
The Port’s General Manager explained that two shipping lines serve Antigua from the Spanish-speaking country each week and that their exports to the Eastern Caribbean could be vastly improved, especially if trade with the US is retarded because of tariff increases.
The shipping lines land 40 containers in Antigua each week, and 20 other containers proceed to other islands in the Caribbean.
Many products from Central and South America are brought by these ships directly from Santo Domingo; if US-imposed tariffs cause goods transiting the USA to become significantly more expensive, then the General Manager proposes that many more items can be purchased directly from suppliers in Central or South America.
The Minister of Trade is charged with the responsibility, by the Cabinet, to begin exploring the possibility of utilizing the vessels docking in Antigua from the Dominican Republic to bring additional items of trade directly to Antigua.
In order to achieve this end, an expert team has been appointed to study the greater likelihood of success of a trade link with the Dominican Republic, with the possibility of a bilateral agreement with the Port of St. John’s and the Port of Santo Domingo.
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