WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  WT/L/794 
2 June 2010 
 (10-3035) 
General Council 
29-30 July 2010 Original:   English 
 
 
 
UNITED STATES – CARIBBEAN BASIN ECONOMIC RECOVERY ACT 
 
Report of the Government of the United States for the Year 2009  
under the Decision of 27 May 20091 
 
  The following communication, dated 31 May 2010, is being circulated at the request of the Delegation of the United States.  
_______________ 
 
 
1. Introduction 
1. On 27 May 2009, the United States was granted a renewal of the waiver (WT/L/753) of its 
obligations under paragra ph 1 of Article I and paragraphs 1 a nd 2 of Article XIII of the GATT 1994 to 
the extent necessary to permit the United States Govern ment to provide duty free treatment to eligible 
products of the Caribbean Basin countries and territori es as authorized by the provisions of Caribbean 
Basin Economic Recovery Act (CBERA) without being required to extend the same duty-free 
treatment to like products of any other Me mber.  This waiver expires 31 December 2014. 
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 2009. 
2. Duty Free Treatment under the CBERA 
3. Section 211 of the CBERA allows the President of the United States to eliminate duties on all 
products, with certain exceptions
2, from those Caribbean countries and territories that he designates as 
beneficiaries.  Presently, 18 countries and terr itories have requested and are receiving CBERA 
benefits.  These countries and territories are: An tigua and Barbuda, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, 
Belize, British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Netherlands 
Antilles, Panama, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and 
                                                      
1 WT/L/753. 
2 Prior to enactment of the United States-Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act (CBTPA) in 2000, the 
products excluded from duty free treatment were: tex tile and apparel articles which are subject to textile 
agreements; certain footwear which was not eligible fo r 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 countries not accorded MFN treatment; and certain leather 
products (handbags, luggage, flat goods, work gloves, and leatherwearing apparel).  Many of these excluded 
products became  eligible for preferential treatme nt 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/794 
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  Tobago.  In December 2009, Suriname requested benefits under the CBERA.  The United States is 
currently engaged in public consultations re garding Suriname’s eligibility for benefits. 
4. On 5 August 2004, the United States signed th e 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-D R entered into force for each of these countries, 
the country ceased to be designated as a CBERA and CBTPA beneficiary.  The United States and Panama signed a free trade agreement on 28 June 2 007, but that agreement has not yet entered into 
force. 
5. The Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity through Partnership Encouragement (HOPE) Act of 
2006 further 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 sourcing 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 a llow for duty-free treatment for qualifying Haitian-
produced apparel. 
3. CBERA Performance 
6. The CBERA program has helped beneficiary countries diversify their exports.  On a region-
wide basis, this export diversification has led to  a more balanced production and export base and has 
resulted in a reduction in the region’s vulnerability to fluctuations in markets for traditional products.   
7. US imports under CBERA preferences have fallen significantly since the last report from the 
United States in November 2005 (WT/L/633).  In 2005, US imports under CBERA were $12.3 
billion.  In 2009, US imports under CBERA had fallen to $2.4 billion.  The primary reasons for the drop in imports were the departure of six countries from the CBERA program and the global 
economic recession. 
8. The value of US imports of textile and a pparel from CBERA beneficiary countries was $382 
million in 2009, compared to $6.6 billion in 2005.  CBERA beneficiary countries accounted for 
0.6 per cent of the value of total US textile and a pparel imports in 2009, compared to 10.6 per cent in 
2005.  Much, but not all of the decline, is due to the shift of the leading apparel-supplying countries 
from the CBERA program to the CAFTA-DR. 
9. In addition to resulting in a decline in US  imports of apparel from CBERA beneficiary 
countries, the movement of CBERA’s six large a pparel producers to the CAFTA-DR has also caused 
a major shift in the composition of imports to the United States from CBERA beneficiary countries.  Of the $2.4 billion in imports under CBERA in 2009,  energy products accounted for 71.9 per cent, 
textiles and apparel (almost all appa rel) for 16.2 per cent, and agricultu ral products for 5.9 per cent.  
The composition of imports under CBERA in 2009 was very different from that for 2005.  Apparel 
accounted for more than one-half (53.4 per cent) of imports under CBERA in 2005, and energy 
products accounted for only 24.3 per cent. 
10. Mineral fuels (HTS chapter 27) accounted for more than half of total US imports from 
CBERA countries in 2009.  The three leading categories of US imports from CBERA countries in 2009 – mineral fuels, inorganic chemicals (HTS ch apter 28), organic chemicals (HTS chapter 29) – 
accounted for more than 70 per cent of US imports from CBERA countries.    WT/L/794 
 Page 3 
 
 
  11. Trinidad and Tobago became the leading source of US imports entering under CBERA 
preferences in 2005.  The United States imported $1.5 billion under CBERA preferences from Trinidad and Tobago in 2009, a decrease of 35.2 per cent from 2008.  Imports under CBERA 
preferences from Trinidad and Tobago are dominated by petroleum and methanol. 
12. Statistical annexes are provided to present a detailed description of the trade aspects of the 
CBERA program for the most recent period.  De tailed information for previous years has been 
provided in previous reports to th e GATT Council or WTO General Council. 
 
______________ 
 
 Table 1 provides summary information on US imports for consumption under CBERA provisions 
during the period 2001 through 2009. 
 
Table 2  provides information on leading US imports  for consumption under CBERA provisions, by 
product, during 2007 – 2009. 
 Table 3  provides information on US trade with CBERA countries during 2001 through 2009.
   
  WT/L/794 
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TABLE 1 
US Imports for Consumption under the CBERA Provisions, by Sources, 2001-20093 
 
Source 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 
 Value (1,000 dollars) 
Trinidad and Tobago 753,448 1,173,434 1,410,853 1,674,430 2,734,524 3,677,726 2,832,296 2,365,386 1,533,773 
Haiti 158,698 176,509 210,690 218,264 303,390 379,321 430,389 405,118 388,854 
Jamaica 195,207 194,059 178,939 166,708 152,163 245,755 235,947 319,600 212,365 
Bahamas 75,811 70,881 87,996 92,705 111,345 125,056 137,351 141,038 96,545 
Belize 48,519 42,834 41,583 44,477 54 ,749 72,221 54,460 129,517 66,019 
Panama 42,254 41,551 40,834 32,791 40,751 33,828 31,191 46,466 20,607 
Guyana 23,769 21,912 16,668 21,048 6,721 5,098 10,099 20,613 14,418 
St. Lucia 7,225 7,980 5,288 5,836 6,353 7,076 8,594 11,081 10,937 
St. Kitts and Nevis 29,490 27,305 25,713 29 ,663 25,211 24,750 16,189 14,071 8,919 
Barbados 12,002 12,357 6,951 3,513 3,859 4,765 7,100 6,913 4,603 
Netherlands Antilles 6,043 3,089 2,714 5,206 6,763 2,157 3,598 11,933 868 
Antigua 152 43 60 51 34 23 132 94 231 Aruba 22 23 69 29 30 171 295 229 153 
St. Vincent and the Grenadines 2,223 5,514 2,536 2,925 521 210 216 171 117 
Dominica 80 374 2,528 369 79 66 45 200 115 Grenada 7,265 37 3 11 9 56 25 126 78 
British Virgin Islands 21 66 229 319 198 223 65 437 26 
Costa Rica 1,011,454 1,154,516 1,083,025 1,078,966 1,157,763 1,382,065 1,417,864 1,252,756 0 Dominican Republic 2,363,324 2,679,342 2,614,736 2,598,254 2,483,579 2,481,035 310,104 0 0 
El Salvador 1,008,274 1,144,089 1,185,146 1,125,843 1,226,033 154,121 0 0 0 
Guatemala 744,157 1,044,628 1,088,930 1,189,520 1,246,183 652,845 0 0 0 Honduras 1,670,844 1,989,871 2,175,122 2,314,464 2,372,315 555,925 0 0 0 
Nicaragua 147,887 212,845 249,015 331,229 403,798 110,981 0 0 0 
Montserrat 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
Total 8,308,171 10,003,260 10,429,629 10,936,621 12,336,372 9,915,473 5,495,960 4,725,747 2,358,628 
                                                      
3CAFTA-DR entered into force for the followin g countries (date of entry in to force), at which time they  ceased to be CBERA benef iciaries: El Salvador (1 March 2006), 
Honduras and Nicaragua (1 April 2006), Guatem ala (1 July 2006), the Domi nican Republic (1 March 2007), and Costa Rica, (1 Janua ry 2009).  
   WT/L/794
 Page 5 
 
TABLE 1– CONTINUED 
US Imports for Consumption under the CBERA Provisions, by Sources, 2001-2009  
 
Source 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 
 Per cent of total 
Trinidad and Tobago 9.07 11.73 13.53 15.31 22.17 37.09 51.53 50.05 65.03 
Haiti 1.91 1.76 2.02 2.00 2.46 3.83 7.83 8.57 16.49 
Jamaica 2.35 1.94 1.72 1.52 1.23 2.48 4.29 6.76 9.00 
Bahamas 0.91 0.71 0.84 0.85 0.90 1.26 2.50 2.98 4.09 
Belize 0.58 0.43 0.40 0.41 0.44 0.73 0.99 2.74 2.80 Panama 0.51 0.42 0.39 0.30 0.33 0.34 0.57 0.98 0.87 
Guyana 0.29 0.22 0.16 0.19 0.05 0.05 0.18 0.44 0.61 
St. Lucia 0.09 0.08 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.07 0.16 0.23 0.46 St. Kitts and Nevis 0.35 0.27 0.25 0.27 0.20 0.25 0.29 0.30 0.38 
Barbados 0.14 0.12 0.07 0.03 0.03 0.05 0.13 0.15 0.20 
Netherlands Antilles 0.07 0.03 0.03 0.05 0.05 0.02 0.07 0.25 0.04 Antigua (
4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 0.01 
Aruba (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 0.01 (4) 0.01 
St. Vincent and the Grenadines 0.03 0.06 0.02 0.03 (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 
Dominica (4) (4) 0.02 (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 
Grenada 0.09 (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 
British Virgin Islands (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) (4) 0.01 (4) 
Costa Rica 12.17 11.54 10.38 9.87 9.38 13.94 25.80 26.51 0.00 
Dominican Republic 28.45 26.78 25.07 23.76 20.13 25.02 5.64 0.00 0.00 El Salvador 12.14 11.44 11.36 10.29 9.94 1.55 0.00 0.00 0.00 
Guatemala 8.96 10.44 10.44 10.88 10.10 6.58 0.00 0.00 0.00 
Honduras 20.11 19.89 20.86 21.16 19.23 5.61 0.00 0.00 0.00 Nicaragua 1.78 2.13 2.39 3.03 3.27 1.12 0.00 0.00 0.00 
Montserrat 0.00 0.00 0.00 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 
Note:  Because of rounding, figures may not add to totals given. 
Source:   Compiled from official statistics of the US International Trade Commission. 
 
                                                      
4 Less than 0.005 per cent. WT/L/794 
Page 6  
 
  TABLE 2 
Leading US Imports for Consumption under CBERA Provisions, 2007-2009  
 
HTS number Description 2007 2008 2009 Change 2008-
2009 
  Value (millions of dollars) Per cent 
2709.00.20 Petroleum oils and o ils from bituminous minerals, 
crude, testing 25 degrees A.P. I. or more 1,309 904 800 -11.5 
2905.11.20 Methanol (Methyl alcohol ), other than imported only 
for use in producing synthetic  natural gas (SNG) or for 
direct use as fuel 1,004 1,175 568 -51.7 
2207.10.60 Undenatured ethy l alcohol of 80 percent vol. alcohol or 
higher, for nonbeverage purposes 263 483 203 -58.0 
6109.10.00 T-shirts, singlets, tank tops and similar garments, 
knitted or crocheted, of cotton 196 169 194 15.1 
6110.20.20 Sweaters, pullovers and similar articles, knitted or 
crocheted, of cotton, nesoi 140 146 152 4.3 
3903.11.00 Polystyrene, expandable, in primary forms 133 136 94 -30.7 
2710.11.25 Naphthas (exc. motor fue l/mtr fuel blend. stock) fr 
petroleum oils & bitumin minerals (o/than crude) or 
preps 70%+ by wt. fr petroleum oils 227 144 60 -58.6 
2710.19.05 Distillate and residual fuel oil (including blends) 
derived from petroleum or oils from bituminous 
minerals, testing under 25 degrees A.P.I. 77 20 29 45.8 
2207.20.00 Ethyl alcohol and other spirits, denatured, of any 
strength 65 20 27 33.7 
2009.11.00 Orange juice, frozen, unf ermented and not containing 
added spirit 100 65 17 -74.1 
6109.90.10 T-shirts, singlets, tank tops and similar garments, 
knitted or crocheted, of man-made fibers 65 22 16 -27.8 
0714.90.20 Fresh or chilled yams, whether or not sliced or in the 
form of pellets 23 30 16 -46.7 
1604.14.40 Tunas and skipjack, not in airtight containers, not in 
oil, in bulk or in immediate containers weighing with 
contents over 6.8 kg each 14 13 13 0.2 
0807.20.00 Papayas (papaws), fresh 16 14 11 -18.6 
1701.11.10 Cane sugar, raw, in soli d form, w/o added flavoring or 
coloring, subject to add. US 5 to Ch.17 31 22 11 -49.4 
2710.11.45 Light oil mixt. of hydroc arbons fr petro oils & bitum 
min(o/than crude) or prep 70%+ wt. fr petro oils, nesoi, 
n/o 50% any single hydrocarbon 80 15 10 -30.9 
8529.10.20 Television antennas and antenna reflectors, and parts 
suitable for use therewith 6 8 9 22.1 
7108.12.50 Gold, nonmonetary, unwrought (o/than gold bullion 
and dore) 1 27 9 -67.7 
2207.10.30 Undenatured ethy l alcohol of 80 percent vol. alcohol or 
higher, for beverage purposes 8 9 6 -28.8 
0804.30.40 Pineapples, fresh or dried, not reduced in si ze, in crates 
or other packages 378 393 6 -98.5 
 Total of above 4,136 3,813 2,251 -41.0 
 All other 1,360 913 108 -88.2 
  Total 5,496 4,726 2,359 -50.1 
Note:  Because of rounding, figures  may not add to totals given.  The abbreviatio n "nesoi" stands for "not elsewhere specified 
or otherwise included." 
Source:   Compiled from official statistics of the US International Trade Commission. 
 
  WT/L/794 
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  TABLE 3 
US Trade with CBERA Beneficiary Countries, 2001-20095 
 
Year US exports6 Share of US 
exports to the 
world US imports7 Share of US 
imports from 
the world US trade 
balance 
 Million dollars Per cent Million dollars Per cent Million dollars 
2001 20,117.1 3.0 20,678.9 1.8 -561.8 
2002 20,702.5 3.3 21,254.8 1.8 -552.3 
2003 22,183.6 3.4 24,499.6 2.0 -2,315.9 
2004 22,998.8 3.2 27,555.5 1.9 -4,556.7 
2005 26,061.0 3.2 31,814.3 1.9 -5,753.4 
2006 24,292.9 2.6 25,755.2 1.4 -1,462.4 
2007 19,724.4 1.9 19,058.2 1.0 666.1 
2008 23,496.7 2.0 19,485.5 0.9 4,011.2 
2009 14,482.9 1.5 9,414.0 0.6 5,068.9 
Source:   Compiled from official statistics of the US International Trade Commission. 
 
 
__________  
                                                      
5 Includes imports and exports for countries only while they were CBERA beneficiaries.  See CBERA 
Table 1 for program coverage. 
6 Domestic exports, f.a.s. basis. 
7 Imports for consumption, customs value.