The US is the Bahamas' major trading partner. Canada and the European Community also trade frequently with the Bahamas since several agreements have been signed with these countries. These agreements include the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI), the Caribbean-Canada Agreement (CAIBCAN), and the Lomé Convention.
Exports include pharmaceuticals, cement, rum, crawfish, and aragonite. Imports are primarily composed of foodstuffs, manufactured goods, crude oil, vehicles, and electronics.
About 91% of imports arrive from the US. Principal trading partners in 1997 (in millions of US dollars) were as follows:
COUNTRY | EXPORTS | IMPORTS | BALANCE |
United States | 139.9 | 1,472.8 | -1,332.9 |
France | 20.9 | 11.9 | 9.0 |
United Kingdom | 3.8 | 11.8 | -8.0 |
Canada | 3.9 | 10.9 | -7.0 |
Mexico | 3.5 | 10.4 | -6.9 |
Switzerland | 1.0 | 5.4 | -4.4 |
Germany | 0.8 | 9.1 | -8.3 |
Japan | 0.3 | 9.3 | -9.0 |
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