Cuban envoy, Gopee-Scoon discuss trade

CUBA ambassador designate Gustavo Daniel Veliz Olivares paid a courtesy visit to Minister of Trade and Industry Paula Gopee-Scoon at the ministry in Port of Spain on June 4.

In a media release, the ministry said, “Both parties acknowledged the long-standing and special relationship that the two countries have enjoyed over the decades.”

TT formally established diplomatic relations with Cuba over 50 years ago, simultaneously with Barbados, Jamaica and Guyana, making them among the first countries to do so.

Gopee-Scoon urged that new mechanisms be found to encourage further trade between the two countries,” the release said.

TT, typically a net exporter to Cuba, exported a diverse range of products in 2022. Top exports included energy and non-energy products, such as anhydrous ammonia, toilet tissue, glass bottles and aerated water.

That same year, TT imported ten products from Cuba, including chlorine, iron containers, cigars, rum, electric water heaters and vehicle parts.