Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo has reiterated that Guyana and the United States are continuing discussions on the possibility of a further reduction of the reciprocal tariff.
Last week, the White House revealed that the 38% reciprocal tariff announced for Guyana in April has been reduced to 15%.
Some sections of society were critical of the decision, arguing that Guyana could have secured a lower reduction.
During his press conference today, Jagdeo rejected those criticisms, noting that the current reduction is proof that the country’s economic diplomacy was effective.
He further noted that discussions are still ongoing, with hopes of further reducing the tariff to 10%.
According to Jagdeo, the US authorities understand that the trade surplus between the two countries is largely from oil exports.
“They know that it’s almost entirely from the export of oil into the US. So given that, I think we have they’ve approached this matter differently… Now, unlike with some other countries which I think they take a harder line, they understood that the [Guyana’s] surplus is as a result of the oil export, not any unfair currency practices or protective barriers in Guyana that have led to that situation which they accuse other countries of,” Jagdeo told reporters at his press conference last week.
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