CONTACT Magazine (Vol.18 No.3 – December 2018)

looking outwards
Trinidad and Tobago’s top ten non-energy export markets, 2016
Guyana
US$243 million
Suriname
US$66 million
USA
US$236 million
UK
US$40 million
Jamaica
US$117 million
Saint Lucia
US$40 million
Barbados
US$70 million
Netherlands
US$30 million
Grenada
US$68 million
St Vincent &
the Grenadines
US$28 million
“Our
approach is
much more
aggressive”
a much more aggressive approach in terms of interventions and support for local
manufacturing.
Then there is the state of the economy and the lack of foreign exchange. Money
drives everything. The traditional importers and distributors are starting to feel the
crunch. Getting hard currency to restock and so on, and continue operations in the
traditional way, is becoming harder and harder. For the first time the macroeconomic
environment is pushing business in a particular direction to help with their foreign
exchange requirements.
Who are some of our major exporters?
DG: Carib Brewery and SM Jaleel and Company have major investments in the islands.
SM Jaleel goes even further with a presence in South Africa and Saudi Arabia, with
actual production facilities in these territories. Carib has investments up the islands
and acquired a brewery in Florida a few years ago. The ANSA McAL Group of Companies
(owners of Carib) is setting up business in Cuba, in the Mariel Special Economic Zone.
What are the most promising export markets?
DG: The Latin American market seems to have regions which are growing. Our
manufacturers, through exporTT, are aggressively seeking to maximise those territories
where we have existing trade agreements – Colombia, Costa Rica, Panama, Haiti and
Cuba. Cuba has taken a lot of time, but we are now seeing tremendous benefits from
our investments in the island.
16
Trinidad
and Tobago Chamber
of Industry and Commerce
www.chamber.org.tt/contact-magazine