NASSAU, Bahamas, CMC – The Bahamas authorities Wednesday warned that the implementation of a ten % tariff by the US on items and companies exported from the Caribbean Group (CARICOM) nation “might probably affect each commerce flows and customer arrivals.”
“America stays The Bahamas’ principal buying and selling accomplice, accounting for about 83.3 % of our complete imports in 2024, valued at an estimated 5 billion US {dollars}.
“This longstanding financial partnership can also be mirrored in our tourism sector, the place, in 2024, 84 % of our stopover guests originated from the US,” Prime Minister Phillip Davis mentioned as he offered the US$3.89 billion price range to Parliament.
In April, US President Donald Trump introduced far-reaching new tariffs on almost all US buying and selling companions, a transfer that economists and different merchants say is designed to dismantle a lot of the worldwide economic system’s structure and set off broader commerce wars.
Within the case of the Caribbean, Trump introduced a ten % tariff on most regional international locations, whereas within the case of Guyana, the tariff is as excessive as 38 %.
Prime Minister Davis informed legislators that whereas the shut relationship Nassau shares with Washington has yielded appreciable advantages, it additionally underscores the Caribbean nation’s publicity to developments within the US economic system.
“Any slowdown or heightened financial uncertainty in that market can have a direct influence on Bahamian commerce and tourism. This sensitivity is especially related contemplating current coverage bulletins from the US, particularly the proposed imposition of a ten % tariff on all Caribbean nations, together with The Bahamas.
“Such a measure, if carried out, might probably affect each commerce flows and customer arrivals. On this context, the federal government is dedicated to pursuing constructive dialogue with our US and CARICOM companions to handle the implications of this coverage shift in a fashion that protects and promotes mutual financial pursuits,” Davis mentioned.
He mentioned nicely earlier than the election of the present US President, the Bahamas authorities had taken proactive steps to strengthen the nation’s financial resilience via the adoption of a Nationwide Commerce Coverage.
“This coverage lays the muse for a commerce diversification framework that seeks to broaden our export base and cut back overdependence on any single market. On the core of those efforts is a dedication to making sure that world commerce developments don’t unduly drawback Bahamian companies or shoppers.”
Prime Minister Davis said that the federal government has additionally been collaborating with the personal sector to discover enhanced commerce alternatives with Canada, the Dominican Republic, Ghana, and India whereas investigating new transport channels and logistics options.
“Let me share one instance: the typical value of a dozen eggs in The Bahamas at present stands at US$3.79. As compared, in the course of the interval when eggs had been primarily imported from the US, costs soared to as a lot as US$10 per dozen eggs as a result of devastating influence of chook flu on the American poultry business.
“In response, with authorities help, the personal sector was in a position to shift its sourcing to the Dominican Republic, which not solely stabilized provide but additionally resulted in vital financial advantages for Bahamian shoppers by decreasing prices.”
Prime Minister Davis said that the Golden Yoke program has had a helpful influence on pricing, noting that the present common value of eggs in Florida is round US$5.60 per dozen.
“The truth that Bahamian shoppers are paying much less highlights the optimistic influence and strategic benefit of diversifying our commerce partnerships,” he mentioned.
