the r n r a revi B W 



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CUBAN COMMERCIAL MATTERS 



COMMERCIAL AIRSHIP FROM U. S. 

 TO CUBA 



The seaplane Sunshine, the firsl sea 



plane chartered for freight-carrying pur- 

 poses between the United states and < iuba, 

 arrived al Havana May 20th with a cargo 

 of soap. The Sunshine was chartered by 

 S. S. Friedlein, a Havana merchant, and 

 the cargo came on a regular manifest wit h 

 consular papers similar to those issued to 

 ships. 



The cargo did not pass the Havana Cus- 

 tom House, however, because the seaplane 

 landed at Marianao Beach, and the holi- 

 day bathers there seized the entire con- 

 tents as souvenirs. The aviators were an 

 American. John Green, owner of the Sun- 

 shine, and Augustin Parla, a Cuban, for- 

 merly of the Cuban Army. 



EXPORTS OF DAIRY PRODUCTS TO CUBA 

 Before the United States entered the 

 great war, Spain shipped to Cuba 372,000 

 pounds of butter against an importation 

 of 297,000 pounds from the United States; 

 1017 showed an immediate improvement 

 with 383,000 pounds from the United 

 States against 319,000 from Spain. In the 

 following year the main supplies of butter 

 from Denmark were virtually cut off and 

 it is understood a still larger portion was 

 imported from this country. 



Although the United States is not re- 

 puted to be extensive manufacturers of 

 cheese, it nevertheless leads in the ex- 

 portation of cheese in Cuba; 1,700,000 

 pounds in 1916, and 1,500,000 pounds in 

 1917 came from the United States. Mean 

 while all other countries together supplied 

 970,000 pounds in 1916 and only 270,000 

 in 1917. 



COMMERCE IN MONTH OF APRIL 

 For the month of April Cuba was the 

 largest North American importer from 

 the United State's. Cuba took goods to 

 the value of $6,322,000, or a little more 

 than half the total for the same period of 

 1918. 



Cuba led all the other importers into 

 the United States, with a total of $22,- 

 220,000, an increase of $5,400,000. 



EXPORTS IN 1918 FROM HAVANA 

 Declared exports from the consular dis- 

 iriel of Havana to the United States dur- 

 ing 1918 were valued at $77,582,968, a 

 Slight decrease from the 1917 total, which 

 amounted to $78,948,115. Sugar was the 

 chief item of export both years, being 

 worth $46,804,361 in 1918 and $45,125,7^0 

 in 1017; tobacco, next in value, was worth 

 $17,270,389 in 101S and .$10,:! ;:',0,720 in 1017. 



CUBAN COMMERCIAL AGENT 

 Senor Hannibal J. de Mesa has been ap- 

 pointed as commercial agent of the Island 

 to study the economic conditions in Poland 

 and other European countries in the wake 

 of the war. He will report concern ing 

 the steps which should be taken to in- 

 crease the trade with countries already 

 maintaining commercial relations with 

 Tuba, and advise as to the means of es- 

 tablishing such relations with other coun- 

 tries. 



CONTRACT FOR CUBAN NAVAL BASE 

 Monks & Johnson, of Boston, Mass., 

 have been awarded the contract to build 

 the $5,000,000 navy yard at Triscornia, 

 Havana. The new naval base will in- 

 clude drydocks, marine railways, store- 

 houses, foundry, forge shop, machine shops 

 and a large barracks. The contract was 

 let by the Government of Cuba. 



LUBRICATING OIL FACTORY 

 In Camaguey large tracts of land have 

 been set to castor-oil plants, with a view- 

 to the establishment of a lubricating oil 

 factory in Cuba. The experiments made 

 up to the present time give promising re- 

 sults and it is expected that the industry 

 will become a considerable factor in the 

 economic life of the Republic. 



HOLLAND 

 Cuba's diplomatic representative at The 

 Hague, Holland, has advised the State 

 Department that two eminent Dutch finan- 

 ciers will shortly embark for Cuba to 

 study the Cuban market, with a view to 

 increasing trade between the two coun- 

 tries. 



