Back in late March, President Obama traveled to Cuba to build relations and establish trade with the island nation. However, much of Cuba's commerce is controlled by state-owned companies, which are subsequently controlled by Cuba's military. Because of this, American businesses must apply for trading licenses which can take several months to be approved. In addition, Cuba will not change the way in which it conducts business to ease the trading process for Americans. Since December of 2014 nearly 500 American business people visited Cuba and there were approximately 140 visits made by US representatives. Despite this, very few deals were made. Not only do restrictions make trade difficult, but also the culture gap. While Americans are used to quick, timely responses, Cuban officials prefer multiple meetings and vast amounts of time before answering offers. Another hurdle the US would have to conquer is the Cuban ban on using dollars for transactions.
Meredith Teuscher
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/13/world/americas/culture-gap-impedes-us-business-efforts-for-trade-with-cuba.html
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