U.S. businesses carefully eyeing Cuba tourism

U.S. businesses carefully eyeing Cuba tourism
By Scott Mayerowitz
The Associated Press
POSTED: 12/18/2014 12:01:00 AM

NEW YORK — Cuba was once a haven for sun-seeking American tourists.
Beautiful beaches, lively casinos and late-night dancing made it the
perfect getaway, only an hour's flight from Miami.

The Caribbean nation also exported nickel and limestone to the U.S. and
imported American rice.

But the Cuban revolution led by Fidel Castro and the subsequent Cold War
embargo of the Communist island nation put an end to that.

President Barack Obama's announcement Wednesday of plans to re-establish
diplomatic ties with Cuba doesn't suddenly lift the ban on U.S. tourism
and trade. It does, however, give hope to airlines, hotel chains, cruise
companies and commodity traders — all which have been quietly eyeing a
removal of the embargo — that they soon will be able to conduct business
on the island.

"Cuba is the largest country in the Caribbean, so there (are) some
exciting possibilities," said Roger Frizzell, spokesman for Carnival
Corp. He said "some infrastructure for cruising already exists in the
country," although other issues "need to be taken into consideration if
this market opens up."

"We will take our cues from the U.S. government but look forward to
opening hotels in Cuba, as companies from others countries have done
already," Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson said via e-mail.

Others eager for access to a Cuban market are U.S. farmers, energy
producers and importers of rum and cigars.

"We've been positioning ourselves for this day for many years," says
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."

Gary Hufbauer and Barbara Kotschwar of the Peterson Institute for
International Economics estimate that exports of U.S. goods to Cuba
could reach $4.3 billion a year, compared with less than $360 million
last year.

And Cuban merchandise imports to the U.S. could go to $5.8 billion a
year from nothing now.

Detroit automakers would seem to have an opportunity to replace the
1950s American jalopies that now rattle down Cuban streets, but they
weren't saying much Wednesday. "We're encouraged by the announcements
today, and we'll evaluate the opportunities," said General Motors
spokesman Pat Morrissey, who declined comment to comment further.

Source: U.S. businesses carefully eyeing Cuba tourism - The Denver Post
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http://www.denverpost.com/business/ci_27158945/u-s-businesses-carefully-eyeing-cuba-tourism?source=rss