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Trinidadian exporters accused of violating trade rules in Jamaica
Jamaicans cry foul over alleged Trinidad export practices
BY JULIAN RICHARDSON Assistant Business Co-ordinator richardsonj@jamaicaobserver.com
Friday, April 12, 2013
TRINIDADIAN exporters to Jamaica have been accused of violating trade rules by misrepresenting products as being of Caricom origin, allowing them to benefit from lower customs duties and price advantages in the local market.
It's the latest complaint in a long-running trade dispute between the two Caribbean countries, which have had uneasy commercial relations in recent years.
MAIR... more needs to be done by the Jamaican Government to protect local manufacturers. PENGELLEY... you could bring in imported peanuts, but all you do is put the peanuts in a little bag.
MAIR... more needs to be done by the Jamaican Government to protect local manufacturers. PENGELLEY... you could bring in imported peanuts, but all you do is put the peanuts in a little bag.
#slideshowtoggler, #slideshowtoggler a, #slideshowtoggler img {filter:none !important;zoom:normal !important}
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Opposition spokesman for Industry, Commerce and Energy Gregory Mair raised the alarm to the Standing Finance Committee of Parliament on Wednesday, saying that there have been reports of goods being passed off as Trinidadian when in fact they were only repackaged in the twin-island republic.
Goods from Caricom member states which meet rules of origin are traded duty-free throughout the region. A Common External Tariff is usually applied on products originating from outside Caricom.
Mair said the practice would make it even more difficult for Jamaican manufacturers, already being hurt by a flood of cheap imports and high cost of production, to compete.
"The challenge is how does a private sector man — with information that competing products are being brought into Jamaica with material not originated from Caricom — go into Trinidad to investigate and bring proof," Mair told Caribbean Business Report yesterday.
Jamaica Manufacturers' Association (JMA) President Brian Pengelley confirmed that there were concerns over imports not being completely made in Caricom.
"In other words, you could bring in imported peanuts, but all you do is put the peanuts in a little bag. That's not what we call a full conversion process," Pengelley said yesterday.
The JMA president said a report had been made to the Bureau of Standards of Jamaica, which has inspectors at the port.
"I believe they are on the lookout for it and I know some samples have been sent already to the Bureau," said Pengelley, adding, "We need to really look at that in a hard way to protect ourselves."
As the nation grapples with a widening trade deficit with Caricom, now nearly US$1.2 billion ($119 billion), there have been increasing calls by some Jamaicans to pull out from the 15-member regional organisation.
Jamaica has the largest market in Caricom. The country reportedly imports 30 per cent of total intra-regional Caricom exports, but produces less than two per cent of those exports.
Trinidad and Tobago accounts for the bulk of the trade deficit between Jamaica and Caricom. This imbalance compounded with several high-profile trade disputes have strained commercial relations between the two countries.
The twin-island republic's Government has been accused by Jamaicans of providing unfair energy subsidies to its manufacturers. Trinidad, which is rich in gas and oil resources, supplies energy to its manufacturers at just over three cents per kilowatt-hour, while in Jamaica, it's supplied at over 30 cents per kilowatt-hour, giving Trinidadian manufacturers a huge competitive advantage in trade.
Against this background, Mair said that more needs to be done by the Jamaican Government to protect local manufacturers.
"The manufacturers in Trinidad have the full backing of their Government because they recognise that manufacturing is very important for employment, the creation of revenues and the growth of their economy. We in Jamaica have not taken that position," he said.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/busin...#ixzz2QRvzDT5P
Jamaicans cry foul over alleged Trinidad export practices
BY JULIAN RICHARDSON Assistant Business Co-ordinator richardsonj@jamaicaobserver.com
Friday, April 12, 2013
TRINIDADIAN exporters to Jamaica have been accused of violating trade rules by misrepresenting products as being of Caricom origin, allowing them to benefit from lower customs duties and price advantages in the local market.
It's the latest complaint in a long-running trade dispute between the two Caribbean countries, which have had uneasy commercial relations in recent years.
MAIR... more needs to be done by the Jamaican Government to protect local manufacturers. PENGELLEY... you could bring in imported peanuts, but all you do is put the peanuts in a little bag.
MAIR... more needs to be done by the Jamaican Government to protect local manufacturers. PENGELLEY... you could bring in imported peanuts, but all you do is put the peanuts in a little bag.#slideshowtoggler, #slideshowtoggler a, #slideshowtoggler img {filter:none !important;zoom:normal !important}
1/2 Opposition spokesman for Industry, Commerce and Energy Gregory Mair raised the alarm to the Standing Finance Committee of Parliament on Wednesday, saying that there have been reports of goods being passed off as Trinidadian when in fact they were only repackaged in the twin-island republic.
Goods from Caricom member states which meet rules of origin are traded duty-free throughout the region. A Common External Tariff is usually applied on products originating from outside Caricom.
Mair said the practice would make it even more difficult for Jamaican manufacturers, already being hurt by a flood of cheap imports and high cost of production, to compete.
"The challenge is how does a private sector man — with information that competing products are being brought into Jamaica with material not originated from Caricom — go into Trinidad to investigate and bring proof," Mair told Caribbean Business Report yesterday.
Jamaica Manufacturers' Association (JMA) President Brian Pengelley confirmed that there were concerns over imports not being completely made in Caricom.
"In other words, you could bring in imported peanuts, but all you do is put the peanuts in a little bag. That's not what we call a full conversion process," Pengelley said yesterday.
The JMA president said a report had been made to the Bureau of Standards of Jamaica, which has inspectors at the port.
"I believe they are on the lookout for it and I know some samples have been sent already to the Bureau," said Pengelley, adding, "We need to really look at that in a hard way to protect ourselves."
As the nation grapples with a widening trade deficit with Caricom, now nearly US$1.2 billion ($119 billion), there have been increasing calls by some Jamaicans to pull out from the 15-member regional organisation.
Jamaica has the largest market in Caricom. The country reportedly imports 30 per cent of total intra-regional Caricom exports, but produces less than two per cent of those exports.
Trinidad and Tobago accounts for the bulk of the trade deficit between Jamaica and Caricom. This imbalance compounded with several high-profile trade disputes have strained commercial relations between the two countries.
The twin-island republic's Government has been accused by Jamaicans of providing unfair energy subsidies to its manufacturers. Trinidad, which is rich in gas and oil resources, supplies energy to its manufacturers at just over three cents per kilowatt-hour, while in Jamaica, it's supplied at over 30 cents per kilowatt-hour, giving Trinidadian manufacturers a huge competitive advantage in trade.
Against this background, Mair said that more needs to be done by the Jamaican Government to protect local manufacturers.
"The manufacturers in Trinidad have the full backing of their Government because they recognise that manufacturing is very important for employment, the creation of revenues and the growth of their economy. We in Jamaica have not taken that position," he said.
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/busin...#ixzz2QRvzDT5P