The government held a follow-up consultation with the private sector today to assess the impact of the new 10% reciprocal U.S. tariff on Belizean exports. The meeting was chaired by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Francis Fonseca and Minister of State Marconi Leal. It saw the participation of businesses ranging from micro-enterprises to major exporters, along with key industry associations.
The stakeholders voiced serious concerns over increased costs, trade disruptions, and diminished competitiveness, particularly amid ongoing shipping uncertainties. They stressed the need for urgent government support to ease domestic business costs.
Minister Fonseca pledged to stakeholders that he would take their concerns to Cabinet. A press release says that Belize's Embassy in Washington is actively engaging U.S. officials to seek clarification, explore potential exemptions, and reinforce Belize's relationship under the Caribbean Basin Initiative - which gave Belize duty free access to the US market in 1983.
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