A U.S.-Cuba business group says Cuba became the United States' 25th largest food export market during 2004, thanks to an exception to the U.S. trade embargo that allows cash deals for agricultural products.
A report released this week by the New York-based U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council says the United States sold $392 million in products to Cuba in the past year.
The report says Cuba ranked 35th among U.S. export markets in 2003; 50th in 2002 and 144th in 2001. Congress approved the cash-for-agricultural-products exception to the trade embargo in 2000.
The council reports that wheat, rice, corn, chicken and soybeans account for most of the U.S. products sold to Cuba. The increased trade comes despite new Bush administration travel and commercial restrictions against the island nation.
Some information for this report provided by AP.
