THE CUBA REVIEW 



21 



CUBAN COMMERCIAL MATTERS 



MARKET FOR JEWELRY 



Cuba al this time presents unusual op- 

 portunities for the sale of American jewel 

 ry, silverware, and kindred lines, accord- 

 ing to a report by Trade Commissioner S. 

 W. Rosenthal of the Bureau of Foreign 

 and Domestic Commerce. The island is 

 exceptionally prosperous because of the 

 high prices which it has received in the 

 la si few years i'or sugar. 



Cuban markets have been open to 

 American manufacturers since the begin- 

 ning of the war because of curtailed ship 

 ments of jewelry from the usual sources 

 of supply. Germany has shipped nothing, 

 and the jewelry from other European 

 countries was for the time being of in- 

 ferior workmanship. These circumstances, 

 the trade commissioner states, have given 

 American manufacturers an exceptional 

 opportunity to increase their trade. 



Although Cuba is a comparatively small 

 country, with a population but slightly 

 larger than that of the State of New Jer- 

 sey, it is a good field for American nianu- 

 facturers who are interested in foreign 

 trade — first, because of its accessibility, 

 Havana being within eight hours of Key 

 West and within three days of New York ; 

 second, because it is a wealthy country; 

 third, because it is developing rapidly. It 

 is the logical place to start in Latin Ameri- 

 can trade, because of the preferential 

 rates of duty which American merchan- 

 dise enjoys and the comparatively low- 

 cost of selling. 



Cubans are fastidious dressers. They 

 are fond of jewelry and lavish in their ex- 

 penditure for it, since their fashions en- 

 courage the wearing of more jewelry than 

 ours. This market follows European 

 styles, which is natural, since the prevail- 

 ing population is of European origin, and 

 jewelry has been mainly supplied from 

 there. To American manufacturers who 

 are seriously interested in building up 

 a permanent trade in Latin America, Cuba 

 offers an excellent field in which to start, 

 but in general they will have to follow 

 the prevailing styles of the island. This 



should prove to be a profitable market if 

 they spend the time, money, and effort to 

 give it what it wants. 



Cuba is primarily a market for solid- 

 gold jewelry. There is a limited demand 



for gold-plated and gold-filled articles as 



well as I'or goods made of platinum, I he 

 latter being sold mostly in the large cities. 



MARKET FOR TOILET PREPARATIONS 

 During the fiscal year ended June 30, 

 1917, the last one for which oiheial statis- 

 tics are available, 031,245 kilos (286,929 

 pounds) of perfume valued at $805,654 

 were imported into Cuba. Most of tins 

 came through the port of Havana. The 

 portion of this credited to the United 

 States was 16S,494 kilos (76,588 pounds), 

 valued at $145,665. The French imports 

 were valued at $59S,3<J8. These statistics 

 represent a slight gain for the United 

 States and a slight loss for France. 



On perfumes valued at less than $1.25 

 per kilo ($0.57 per pound) there is a 

 specific duty of $0,325 per kilo ($0.15 per 

 pound). On higher values the duty is 

 32.5 per cent, ad valorem. The United 

 States, however, enjoys a 40 per cent, 

 customs rebate on perfumes and essences 

 which are the product of its soil or in- 

 dustry, making the specific duty $0.1!>5 

 per kilo ($0.09 per pound), and the ad 

 valorem duty 19.5 per cent. These figures 

 include the surtaxes. The immediate con- 

 tainer is included in determining the 

 weight. — Consul John S. Calvert, Nuevitas. 



VEHICULAR TRAFFIC IN HAVANA 

 According to a recent municipal report 

 of Havana, from July 1st to August 6th of 

 the present year, traffic plates have been 

 applied for by 13,238 vehicles, giving the 

 municipality $185,447.50 in taxes. 



The number of four-seated automobiles 

 for hire reached 2,815. 



The number of private automobiles was 

 1,932. 



