Trade with Haiti off US$21.7 million
The strong suit in the trade with Haiti is not poultry and poultry products, as many people thing, but rather the construction industry.
The commercial exchange of national products and free zones between the two nations this year was US$421.1 million according to preliminary numbers.
The DR imported products from Haiti for a total of US$50.1 million according to the Center for Exports and Investments of the Dominican Republic (CEI-RD).
As of 30 September, the leading items in exports to Haiti were steel re-bar, with US$29 million and cement at US$17.4 million.
Also soy oil, US$9.4 million, broken grains of rice at US$8.7 million, pasta at US$8.5 million and flour at US$7.8 million.
Other items included detergent powder ($6.5 million), black beans ($6.3 million) tin roofing ($5.4million), corrugated carton boxes ($4.8million) and, at eleventh on the list, are eggs at $3.9 million. According to the report of the last four years the commercial exchange was US$1.414 billion, and of this number, free zone products totaled US$698.1 million. The commercial balance between the two nations was US$1.353.6 billion between 2004 and 2008.
Commercial exchange between the two countries over the last four years was US$87 million in 2004, US$163 million in 2005, US$300.7 million in 2006, US$442.8 million in 2007 and US$421.1 this year according to the CEI-RD numbers.
Local exports towards Haiti reached US$667.4 million over the four year period, and together with the free zones, reached US$716.8 million, and the total amount was put at US$1.384 billion.
Meanwhile, Dominican imports from Haiti between 2004 and 2008 totaled US$207.3 million, which breaks down to US$173.5 from free zones and US$33.8 in other products.
In 2004, the Dominican Republic imported products from Haiti, including products from free zones for a total of US$20.8 million; in 2005, US$22.9 million; in 2006, US$53.5 million; in 2007, US$59.8 million and in 2008, US$50.1 million