WT/L/1038  
 
13 July 2018  
(18-4381) Page: 1/7 
General Council  
26-27 July 2018  Original: English  
 
UNITED STATES – CARIBBEAN BASIN ECON OMIC RECOVERY ACT  
REPORT OF THE GOVERN MENT OF THE UNITED S TATES FOR THE YEAR 2 017 
UNDER THE DECISION O F 5 MAY 20151 
The following communication, dated 11 July 2018, is being circulated at the request of the 
delegation of the United States.  
 
_______________  
 
1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  On 5 May 2015, the United States was granted a renewal of the waiver (WT/L/950) of its 
obligations under paragraph 1 of Article  I and paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article XIII of the GATT 1994 
to the extent nec essary to permit the United States Government to provide duty free treatment to 
eligible products of the Caribbean Basin countries and territories as authorized by the provisions of 
Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (CBERA) without being required to ex tend the same 
duty-free treatment to like products of any other Member. This waiver expires 31 December 2019.  
1.2.  Under the terms of this waiver, the United States is required to submit to the General Council 
an annual report on the implementation of the trade -related provisions of the CBERA with a view 
to facilitating the annual review provided for in paragraph 4 of Article IX of the WTO Agreement. 
This report covers calendar year 2017.  
2  DUTY FREE TREATMENT UNDER THE CBERA  
2.1.  Section 211 of the CBERA allows the Pr esident of the United States to eliminate duties on all 
products, with certain exceptions2, from those Caribbean countries and territories that he 
designates as beneficiaries. In 2016, 17  countries and territories received CBERA benefits. These 
countries a nd territories were: Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, 
British Virgin Islands, Curaçao, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, St.  Kitts 
and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.  
2.2.  On 5 August 2004, the United States signed the Dominican Republic -Central America -United 
States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA -DR) with five Central American countries (Costa Rica, 
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua) and the Dominican Republic. The CAFTA -DR 
entered into force for El Salvador on 1 March 2006; for Honduras on 1 April 2006; for Nicaragua 
on 1 April 2006; for Guatemala on 1 July 2006; for the Dominican Republic on 1 March 2007; and 
for Costa Rica on 1 January 2009. When the CAFTA -DR entered into force for each of these 
                                                
1 WT/L/950.  
2 Prior to enactment of the United States -Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) in 2000, the 
products excluded from duty free treatment were: textile and apparel articles which are subject to textile 
agreements; ce rtain footwear which was not eligible for duty free entry under the US  Generalized System of 
Preferences in 1983; prepared tuna in airtight containers; petroleum and petroleum products; watches and 
watch parts if such products contain any material from cou ntries not accorded MFN treatment; and certain 
leather products (handbags, luggage, flat goods, work gloves, and leather wearing apparel).  Many of these 
excluded products became  eligible for preferential treatment under CBTPA, Title II of the Trade and 
Development Act of 2000, which amended the CBERA. The Trade Act of 2002, the Haitian Hemispheric 
Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) Act of 2006, and the HOPE II Act of 2008 further 
amended the CBERA.  WT/L/1038  
 
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  countries, the country ceased to be designated as a CBE RA and CBTPA beneficiary. On 
31 October  2012, the United States -Panama Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA) entered into force 
and Panama ceased to be designated as a CB ERA and CBTPA beneficiary.  
2.3.  The Trade Act of 2002 amended the CBERA to grant additional benefits to Caribbean Basin 
apparel products.  Specifically, these  changes permitted the use of U S and regional knit -to-shape 
components in eligible apparel articles. In  addition, the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through 
Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) Act of 2006 amended the CBERA program by establishing 
special new rules of origin that make Haiti eligible for new trade benefits for apparel imports and 
that enhance s ourcing flexibility for apparel producers in Haiti. The HOPE II Act of 2008 modified 
the existing trade preference programs under HOPE and added other new programs that allow for 
duty-free treatment for qualifying Haitian -produced apparel. In 2010, the Hai ti Economic Lift 
Program (HELP) Act extended the CBTPA and the HOPE Acts through 30  September  2020.  The 
HELP Act also provided duty -free treatment for additional textile and apparel products from Haiti.  
Section 301 of the Trade Preferences Extension Act o f 2015 extended preferences for certain 
products of Haiti through  30 September 2025.  
3  CBERA PERFORMANCE  
3.1.  Combined with economic reform and other actions taken by beneficiary countries to liberalize 
their trade regimes, the trade benefits of CBI have both hel ped beneficiary countries and 
dependent territories in the region diversify their exports and have contributed to their economic 
growth.  
3.2.  In 2017, U S imports under CBERA preferences increased 10.3 per cent from the previous 
year, primarily due to an increas e in methanol and fuel oil imports. In 2016, U S imports under 
CBERA were US$870.9 million. In 2017, U S imports under CBERA were US$961.0 million.   The 
value of U S imports of textile and apparel3 under CBERA was US$278.3  million in 2017, compared 
to US$305.5 million in 2016.  
3.3.  Of the US$961 million in imports under CBERA in 2017, energy -related products4 accounted 
for 48  per cent, textiles and apparel (almost all apparel) for 29 per cent, and agricultural products 
and processed food for 12.6 per cent.  
3.4.  The leading beneficiary countries for imports entering under CBERA preferences in 2017 were 
Trinidad and Tobago and Haiti. The United States imported US$488 million under CBERA 
preferences from Trinidad and Tobago in 2017. Imports under CBERA preferences from  Trinidad 
and Tobago were dominated by methanol and petroleum. Haiti was t he second leading supplier of 
US imports under CBERA. U S imports from Haiti under CBERA totalled US$295 million in 2017, 
mostly textiles and apparel products.  
3.5.  Statistical annexes are  provided to present a detailed description of the trade aspects of the 
CBERA program for the most recent period. Detailed information for previous years has been 
provided in previous reports to the GATT Council or WTO General Council.  
  
                                                
3 The term "textiles and apparel" used h erein encompasses HTS chapters 50 -63 (based on that used in 
the WTO).  
4 The term "energy -related products" used herein encompasses HTS chapters 27 and 29.  WT/L/1038  
 
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  Table 1 provides s ummary information on U S imports for consumption under CBERA provisions 
during the period 2009 through 2017.  
 
Table 2  provides information on leading US imports for consumption under CBERA provisions, by 
product, during the period 2015 through 2017.  
 
Table 3  provides information on US  trade with CBERA countries  during the period 2009 
through  2017.  
 
 
 
_______________  
  
  WT/L/1038  
 
- 4 - TABLE  1 
US IMPORTS FOR CONSUMPTION  UNDER CBERA  PROVISIONS, BY SOURC ES, 200 9-20175 
Source  2009  2010  2011  2012  2013  2014  2015  2016  2017  
  Value (1,000 dollars)  
Trinidad & Tobago  1,533,773  2,207,842  2,589,360  2,171,197  1,640,709  1,234,474  830,291  378,983  488,160  
Haiti 388,854  364,058  474,602  436,783  362,266  405,395  433,402  317,860  295,323  
Bahamas  96,545  98,975  123,854  130,539  141,654  158,191  88,389  68,403  79,826  
Jamaica  212,365  83,910  179,186  206,201  90,231  71,779  81,583  74,847  72,676  
Belize  66,019  61,744  146,045  131,943  104,777  60,582  36,881  17,136  12,398  
St. Kitts & Nevis  8,919  20,466  27,273  22,350  18,933  18,341  10,481  7,210  5,122  
Barbados  4,603  7,233  4,493  3,813  2,081  5,295  22,570  2,254  3,558  
Grenada Is  78 150 317 341 295 443 1,728  1,809  2,405  
Guyana  14,418  10,632  11,172  5,315  4,532  11,857  34,918  1,551  707 
St. Lucia  10,937  9,199  1,889  1,836  3,210  1,162  1,301  627 342 
Antigua & Barbuda  231 21 23 30 24 19 82 37 161 
Curaçao 0 0 0 0 0 5,365  3 85 124 
St. Vincent & the Grenadines  117 124 88 138 141 182 16 45 102 
Dominica  115 53 149 117 170 66 77 22 48 
Aruba  153 566 249 27 18 75 93 15 36 
Panama  20,607  28,911  54,718  26,308  0 0 0 0 0 
British Virgin Is lands 26 86 136 451 103 50 9 9 0 
Montserrat  0 0 0 24 0 0 0 0 0 
Netherlands Antilles  868 1,193  344 0 0 0 0 0 0 
Total 2,358,628  2,895,164  3,613,899  3,137,413  2,369,144  1,973,277  1,541,822  870,896  960,989  
Note:  Due to rounding, figures may not add to totals given.  
Source:  Compiled from official statistics of the US Department of Commerce.   
                                                
5 CAFTA -DR entered into force for the following countries (date of entry into force), at which time they ceased to be CBER A beneficiaries: El Salvador 
(1 March  2006), Honduras and Nicaragua (1 April 2006), Guatemala (1 July 2006), the Dominican Republic (1 March 2007), and Costa Rica (1 January 2009). TPA 
entered into force as of 31 October 2012, at which time Panama ceased to be a CBERA beneficiary.   
  WT/L/1038  
 
- 5 - TABLE  1 – CONTINUED  
US IMPORTS FOR CONSUMPTION  UNDER CBERA PROVISIO NS, BY SOURCES, 200 9-2017 
Source  2009  2010  2011  2012  2013  2014  2015  2016  2017  
  Per cent of total   
Trinidad & Tobago  65.03  76.26  71.65  69.20  69.25  62.56  53.85  43.52  50.80  
Haiti 16.49  12.57  13.13  13.92  15.29  20.54  28.11  36.50  30.73  
Bahamas  4.09 3.42 3.43 4.16 5.98 8.02 5.73 7.85 8.31 
Jamaica  9.00 2.90 4.96 6.57 3.81 3.64 5.29 8.59 7.56 
Belize  2.80 2.13 4.04 4.21 4.42 3.07 2.39 1.97 1.29 
St. Kitts & Nevis  0.38 0.71 0.75 0.71 0.80 0.93 0.68 0.83 0.53 
Barbados  0.20 0.25 0.12 0.12 0.09 0.27 1.46 0.26 0.37 
Grenada  (a) 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.01 0.02 0.11 0.21 0.25 
Guyana  0.61 0.37 0.31 0.17 0.19 0.60 2.26 0.18 0.07 
St. Lucia  0.46 0.32 0.05 0.06 0.14 0.06 0.08 0.07 0.04 
Antigua & Barbuda  0.01 (a) (a) (a) (a) (a) 0.01 (a) 0.02 
Curaçao  0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.27 (a) 0.01 0.01 
St. Vincent & the Gren adines  (a) (a) (a) (a) 0.01 0.01 (a) 0.01 0.01 
Dominica  (a) (a) (a) (a) 0.01 (a) (a) (a) 0.01 
Aruba  0.01 0.02 0.01 (a) (a) (a) 0.01 (a) (a) 
Panama  0.87 1.00 1.51 0.84 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 
British Virgin Is lands (a) (a) (a) 0.01 (a) (a) (a) (a) 0.00 
Montserrat  0.00 0.00 0.00 (a) 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 
Netherlands Antilles  0.04 0.04 0.01 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 
Total 100.00  100.00  100.00  100.00  100.00  100.00  100.00  100.00  100.00  
(a) Less than 0.005 per cent.  
Source:  Compiled from official statistics of the US Department of Commerce.  
 WT/L/1038  
 
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  TABLE 2  
LEADING US  IMPORTS FOR CONSUMPT ION UNDER CBERA  PROVISIONS, 2015 -2017 
HTS 
Number  Description  2015  2016  2017  Change 
2016 - 
2017  
    Value (millions of dollars)  Per cent  
2905.11.20  Methanol (Methyl alcohol), other than imported 
only for use in producing synthetic natural gas 
(SNG) or for direct use as fuel 650.8  253.2  378.3  49.4 
6109.10.00  T-shirts, singlets, tank tops and similar garments, 
knitted or crocheted, of cotton  271.5  206.7  192.4  -6.9 
3903.11.00  Polystyrene, expandable, in primary forms  86.9 66.6 78.1 17.3 
6110.20.20  Sweaters, pullovers and similar articles, knitted or 
crocheted, of cotton, nesoi  121.0  84.3 73.3 -13.1 
2709.00.20  Petroleum oils and oils from bituminous minerals, 
crude, testing 25 degrees A.P.I. or more  144.9  86.2 53.6 -37.8 
0714.30.10  Fresh or chilled  yams (Dioscorea spp.), whether or 
not sliced or in the form of pellets  20.4 21.1 23.3 10.2 
2933.61.00  Melamine  4.2 12.3 16.7 36.1 
2106.90.98  Other food preps nesoi, incl  preps for the 
manufacture of beverages, non -dairy coffee 
whiteners, herbal teas and flavoured  honey  NV NV 14.9 NA 
6109.90.10  T-shirts, singlets, tank tops and similar garments, 
knitted or crocheted, of man -made fibres  17.5 11.9 12.0 1.1 
2710.19.06  Distillate and residual fuel oil (including blends) 
derived from petroleum or oils from bituminous 
minerals, testing < 25 degrees A.P.I.  0.0 0.2 11.9 7,560.7  
2103.90.90  Sauces and preparations therefor, neosi  8.6 8.2 8.7 6.1 
0804.50.60  Guavas, mangoes, and mangosteens, fresh, if 
entered during the period June 1 through August 
31, inclusive  5.6 2.1 6.3 195.4  
0804.50.40  Guavas, mangoes, and mangosteens, fresh, if 
entered during the period September 1 through 
May 31, inclusive  8.2 6.3 5.6 -10.5 
2009.19.00  Orange juice, not frozen, of a Brix value exceeding 
20, unfermented  7.9 6.5 4.7 -27.3 
2008.99.91  Bean cake, bean stick, miso, other fruit, nuts and 
other edible parts of plans, prepared or preserved  NV NV 4.4 NA 
2202.10.00  Waters, including mineral waters and aerated 
waters, containing added sugar or other 
sweetening matter or flavoured  2.8 2.6 3.8 50.6 
2103.90.80  Mixed condiments and mixed seasonings, not 
described in add US note 3 to Ch. 21  4.3 3.3 3.6 10.2 
2005.99.97  Vegetables nesoi, & mixtures of vegetables, 
prepared or preserved otherwise than by vinegar 
or acetic acid, not frozen, not preserved by sugar  4.1 5.3 3.3 -38.2 
2009.89.60  Juice of any other single fruit, nesi, (including 
cherries and berries), concentrated or not 
concentrated  0.7 1.6 3.1 92.1 
2009.11.00  Orange juice, frozen, unfermented and not 
containing added spirit  6.0 4.8 2.8 -41.7 
8504.31.40  Electrical transformers other than liquid dielectric, 
having a power handling capacity less than 1  kVA 3.0 3.7 2.8 -23.8 
 Total of above  1,368.4  786.8  903.7  14.9 
 All other  173.4  84.1 57.3 -31.9 
  Total 1,541.8  870.9  961.0  10.3 
 
Note:  Due to rounding, figures may not add to totals given. The abbreviations "nesoi " and "nesi " stand for 
"not elsewhere spe cified or otherwise included".  NV indicates the tariff line  was not valid in that 
year. NA  indicates a calculation was not applicable.  
Source:  Compiled from official statistics of the US Department of Commerce.   WT/L/1038  
 
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  TABLE 3  
US TRAD E WITH CBERA BENEFIC IARY COUNTRIES, 200 9-20176 
Year US Exports7 Share of US 
exports to 
the world  US Imports8 Share of US 
imports to the 
world  US trade balance  
 Millions dollars  Per cent  Millions dollars  Per cent  Millions dollars  
2009 14,482.9  1.5 9,350.5  0.6 5,132.4  
2010 18,460.0  1.6 10,082.0  0.5 8,378.1  
2011 19,798.2  1.5 15,268.6  0.7 4,529.7  
2012 20,449.0  1.5 11,939.4  0.5 8,509.6  
2013 11,880.2  0.9 8,925.3  0.4 2,955.0  
2014 12,742.8  0.9 8,484.1  0.4 4,258.8  
2015 11,635.1  0.9 7,046.5  0.3 4,588.6  
2016 10,478.4  0.9 5,321.7  0.2 5,156.7  
2017 12,177.3  0.9 5,799.1  0.2 6,378.2  
Note:  Due to rounding, figures may not add to totals given.  
Source : Compiled from official statistics of the US Department of Commerce.  
__________  
                                                
6 Includes imports and exports for countries only while they were CBERA beneficiaries. See CBERA 
Table  1 for progra mme coverage.  
7 Domestic exports, f.a.s. basis.  
8 Imports for consumption, customs value.