US-Cuba thaw could benefit several sectors
US-Cuba thaw could benefit several sectors
WASHINGTON (AP) — Freighters once carried Cuban nickel and limestone to the port of New Orleans and North Dakota beans to Havana. Cuban families ate bowls of American rice, while U.S. tourists flocked to casinos and nightclubs in Havana.
The United States’ commercial ties with Cuba were broken 54 years ago. Now, U.S.-Cuba trade is poised to resume, and economic ties are expected to follow.
Among those eager for access to a Cuban market cut off by an economic embargo are U.S. farmers, travel companies, energy producers and importers of rum and cigars.
“We’ve been positioning ourselves for this day for many years,” said Erik Herzfeld, co-portfolio manager of the Herzfeld Caribbean Basin fund, which has been investing in “the cruise lines, infrastructure (companies), any company that we think will eventually have a role in Cuba.”