The embargo on U.S. trade with Cuba was enacted in 1962 by President John. F. Kennedy, and since, in various iterations, it has remained in place. Ending the embargo would open up opportunities for the country to grow economically and for U.S. businesses to expand to a new market, but ending it is a politically charged topic unlikely to move forward unless Cuba's government can clearly demonstrate that it has made changes that satisfy the embargo's proponents.

Events in the 2010s and Beyond

In 2015, President Barack Obama announced that the U.S. would ease restrictions on trade and travel with Cuba. The announcement was greeted with enthusiasm by cigar aficionados, rum drinkers, leisure travelers, and some, but by no means all, Cuban ex-pats.

Soon after his election (first term), President Donald Trump said that he would roll back that agreement if Cuba did not agree to further concessions. Yet, by the end of his term, no substantive action had taken place, and the restrictions on travel and commerce had remained largely in place. 

"Largely" means that there have been small official jabs from time to time that are apparently meant to warn Cuba that the U.S. could get tough if it wanted to. For instance, at the end of 2019, the administration ordered a halt to U.S. flights to Cuban destinations, except for Havana.

In July 2021, however, the Biden Administration imposed new 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:sanctions on Cuba following the Cuban government's crackdown on demonstrators in the streets of Cuba protesting the shortages in medicine and food resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Senator Robert Mendez, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the son of Cuban immigrants, framed Biden's policy. Mendez was previously critical of the Obama Administration's softer line on Cuba.

Before leaving office in January 2025, President Biden revoked the National Security Presidential Memorandum 5 (NSPM-5) issued by his predecessor, Donald Trump, which restricted travel and certain financial transactions. Then, on the first day of office in his second term, President Donald Trump reinstated Cuba's status as a state sponsor of terrorism and revoked President Biden's revocation.

Follow the Money

The reality is that Cuban products are already widely available in Europe and other parts of the world. If and when the United States becomes a more active 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:trading partner with Cuba, it is likely that the same European multinational corporations that distribute Cuban products to the rest of the world will contr🐼ol the distribution of those products in the U.S. as well.

To understand tꦡhe potential oppor🎐tunities for investors, it is helpful to know a bit of history and have some insight into how big business works in Cuba now.

A Brief History

Before Fidel Castro came to power in 1959, an enormous percentage of the Cuban economy was under the control of U.S. corporations. U.S. companies even dominated the island's utilities and railroads. They also controlled a significant portion of its natural resources, including its sugar, cattle, tobacco, timber, oil, mining, and farm industries.

Cuba's new 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:communist government nationalized all of these assets, claiming them in the name of the Cuban people. The U.S. retaliated by slapping a trade emb🅷argo in place in hopes of toppling the Cuban government🐼.

6 Decades Later

After the passage of six decades that saw the collapse of the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War, and the passin꧟g of the torch by Fidel Castro to his brother Raul, who has also now retired, it is clear to all parties that the trade embargo did not achieve its purpose.

Today, many argue that the embargo makes no real sense and that ending it would not only make U.S. 澳洲幸运5官方开奖结果体彩网:consumers happy but will also further the goal of bringing more freedom to citi🌃zens of the island nation.

Big Business, Communist Style

The Revolution may have freed the island from the dominance of U.S. business interests, but even communists like to make a profit. Accordingly, the Castro government long ago entered into agreements with European-based multinational firms to distribute Cuban products, includinജg its famous cigars and rum.

Cigars

The British company Imperial Brands had exclusive rights to sell Cuban cigars through stakes in the Cuban cigar companies Habanos, Altabana, Internacional Cubana de Tabaco, and Promotora de Cigarro. The company, however, sold its cigar business in 2020 to individual investors.

Rum Doings

Cuba’s rum business 🦄weaves a tangled web. When Castr𝔉o took over, rum makers, including Bacardi Limited and Jose Arechabala S.A., were thrown out of the country.

The French entered the fray when Pernod Ricard joined forces with Cuba’s state-run Cubaexport and began selling the storied Havana Club brand of rum, formerly produced by Jose Arechabala.

(Bacardi produces a rum with the same name in Puerto𒊎 Rico, using a recipe from the Are🤡chabala family, for sale only in the U.S.).

U.S. Demand

So, the opportunity to distribute the most familiar Cuban products in the U.S. may or may not present itself. But that doesn't mean there aren't other opportunities, both in goods imported to the U.S. and goods exported to Cuba.

There's still one big hurdle if you're a stickler for following rules set in the dim past. Reasonable estimates place the total value of U.S. assets seized by the Cuban government somewhere in the $7 billion range. U.S. law requires that money be repaid before the trade embargo can be lifted.

It is highly unlikely that the Cuban government will hand over the cash, though there's always the possibility that some other arrangement could be made that would open the door to new business.

The Tourist Status

On the tourism front, Americans were already making their way to Cuba via Canada,⛄ Mexico, Europe, and other countries that have had flights headed to Havana long b💮efore President Barack Obama temporarily lifted some restrictions in 2015.

To 🍌this day, there are exceptions to the ban for university groups, academic research, journalism, and professional meetings. Travel to Cuba by performers and athletic competitors is allowed, as are family visits and humanitarian visitors. In short, many U.S. citizens can travel to Cuba on one or more of those exceptions.

At this point, cruise ships owned by U.S. companies are not permitted to stop in Cuba (as U.S. tourist activities are still prohibited), but commercial flights from the U.S. are offered by some national airlines.

Cuban Opportunities

Cuba's tropical beauty has an obvious allure to travelers, but the country offers the possibility of profit for more mundane enterprises. Food, clothing, and agricultural implements are all potential Cuban imports. The island's aging infrastructure badly needs to be updated, which should present opportunities for construction firms, purveyors of cement and other building materials, engineers, architects, and home builders.

Just South of Florida

Real estate agents specializing in Cuban properties would likely be in demand as Americans seek second or retirement homes in a sunnier part of the world. Automobile sales are another possible opportunity. Shipping companies would make money and generate jobs, particularly in the southern portion of the U.S., as an increasing num꧑ber of products are delivered back and forth between the two nations.

In addition, large and mid-sized businesses and entrepreneurs both on and off the island are likely 🉐to identify profitable niche opportunities for everything from seafood to suntan lotion if renewed relations create opportunities.

When Will This Happen?

Just when will all sanctions be lifted and trade relations normalized? No one knows. Economic ties can be slow to develop, the politics relating to Cuba are complex, and businesses may be cautious about entering into relationships with a country known for nationalizing assets, however long ago. In the meantime, Cuba's forbidden fruit will continue to tantalize its northern neighbors.

The Bottom Line

The U.S. imposed an embargo on Cuba after Castro toppled the government and installed a communist regime during a period ꦗwhen the U.S. a🍒nd the Soviet Union were tangled up in the Cold War, fighting for the dominance of their ideologies (democracy vs. communism) throughout the world.

The embargo has severely hurt Cuba's economy, and with the Soviet Union no longer in existence, communism no longer a threat to U.S. interests, and Cuba's move towards a more liberal economy, many support lifting the embargo.