The Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry, BCCI, fears proposed new US fees on Chinese ships could severely hurt Caribbean economies driving up shipping costs and the prices of goods and threaten jobs.
The US proposal includes heavy port fees for Chinese-built vessels of up to 1.5 million US dollars per port call and 500 thousand US dollars per call on all vessels owned by companies that have ships constructed in China.
Vice President of the BCCI, Paul Inniss, tells Starcom Network News the business sector has raised the issue with the government here and notes that Barbados’ Prime Minister Mottley and other regional heads are to discuss the matter with US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, when they meet in Jamaica on Wednesday.
Mr. Inniss believes that unless the US has a change of heart, the implications could be dire.
The BCCI Vice President points out that unless a waiver is granted other sources of goods may need to be found.
Vice President of the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Paul Inniss.
