Market Access Is Being Reset, One Measure at a Time

The headline is relief, but it is partial. CARICOM's Secretary-General has welcomed the restoration of Caribbean Basin Initiative preferences after the temporary Section 122 tariffs expired in July. At the same time, the United States imposed new tariffs of 10 to 12.5 per cent on 60 economies under a forced-labour trade enforcement initiative, and three CARICOM members are among them. Access has improved in general and tightened for particular products and countries.

Closer to home, the region is reviewing its own external protection. Four assessment teams coordinated by the CARICOM Secretariat were due to meet between 12 and 27 October on paints and varnishes, petroleum bitumen, hydraulic cement and glass bottles, to test whether regional producers can supply regional demand. Their findings will go to the Council for Trade and Economic Development. CARICOM has already suspended a proposed 35 per cent tariff on paints and varnishes from outside the region, and private sector bodies in Guyana have warned that higher regional tariffs on goods such as sugar, glass bottles and paint could raise prices where regional supply falls short. No tariff change has been announced.

Meanwhile, the Secretary-General has stressed the need to diversify beyond energy and commodities, with talks and negotiations under way with Colombia, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic. Market entry in this region now means reading three rulebooks at once: Washington's, the Community's and those of the new partners it is courting.