At the request of the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) has launched an investigation to study the economic effects of the statutory and administrative restrictions related to trade with and travel to Cuba on exports of U.S. goods and services. This investigation follows President Obama’s December 17, 2014 announcement to ease economic and travel restrictions against Cuba.
The USITC report will contain:
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A ten-year overview of Cuba’s imports of goods and services, identifying major countries, products, and market segments;
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A description of how U.S. restrictions on trade affect Cuban imports of U.S. goods and services; and
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An estimate of U.S. exports of goods and services to Cuba should the U.S. lift statutory, administrative, and other trade restrictions on U.S. exports of goods and services and travel to Cuba.
The USITC will hold a public hearing in connection with the investigation on March 24, 2015. Written submissions for the record should be submitted by April 15, 2015 and addressed to the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. International Trade Commission, 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC 20436. Requests to appear at the hearing must be filed before March 10, 2015. It will deliver the report to the Finance Committee no later than September 15, 2015.
The USITC is an independent, fact-finding Federal agency responsible for investigating trade matters. This is not the first time the USITC has examined the economic effects of U.S. trade restrictions with Cuba. In 2007, the USITC found that lifting trade and travel restrictions on Cuba would lead to significant financial returns for U.S. agricultural exporters.
For further information about U.S. trade policy with Cuba and related issues, please contact David Agee, Cortney Morgan, Carlos Rodriguez, Robert Stang, Linda Tiller, or Joe Orlet.