Leaders to Discuss Future of Florida Business Link

According to an old proverb used by economists, when the United States sneezes, Latin America is cold. This phrase, which graphically describes the nature of the ties between the two regions, may have an inverse effect in Florida: if there is good health in Latin America and the Caribbean, the Sun State economy improves.

As doctors with stethoscopes, leaders and analysts of the region will hear in Miami the beats of the Latin American economies and the cardiac noises of state policies during the first Latin American Summit sponsored by Florida Gov. Rick Scott. In the lineup of dignitaries, speakers are the Secretary of the Organization of American States, Luis Almagro; the United States Trade Representative, Ambassador Robert Lighthizer, and Argentine Production Minister Francisco Cabrera.

"We know that peace and prosperity go hand in hand, and nations that protect human rights and democracy are making progress in our global economy," Scott writes in the summit's letter of 8:30 A.M at the InterContinental Hotel.

"Florida leads the rest of the states in trade, exports and imports with Latin America and the Caribbean, but we must further improve our relationship with our partners in Latin America to encourage more opportunities for both Floridians and Latin Americans" .

By 2016, merchandise trade balance between Florida and the world reached nearly $ 143 billion, down 2.9 percent compared to the previous year, according to statistics from Enterprise Florida, the State Economic Development Office. Trade with Latin America accounted for 55.8 per cent of total trade in merchandise, and 73.7 per cent of exports. Brazil, Colombia and Chile are among Florida's top five trading partners, as well as China and Japan.

Manuel Mencia, Enterprise Florida's Vice President of Development and International Trade, believes that Latin America in general is going through a period of transition from capitalist restoration and detachment from leftist populist governments. The shift to more national models of economic development more open to the private sector and foreign direct investment presents new opportunities for Florida's industry, he said.

"What happens in Latin America fundamentally affects Florida," Mencia told the New Herald. "If things go well there, Florida benefits in many ways: more investment, more trade, more export. When things go wrong, our businesses suffer, investment declines. In addition, other countries in the world are more likely to invest here when opportunities in Latin America are broader. "

Among the speakers and panelists who will share their vision of the hemispheric economic landscape are Donna Hrinak, president of Boeing Latin America; Juan Kuryla, director of the Port of Miami; Emilio Gonzalez, director of the Miami-Dade Aviation Department; Thomas Kenna, president of Panama Canal Railway Company; Marcelo Mindlin, president of Pampa Energy, Argentine energy company; Paulo Cesar de Souza, executive president of Embraer, Brazilian aeronautical company; Romaine Seguin, UPS President for the Americas; and Paul Browning, president of Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems in the Americas.

The presence of trade officials and the business sector in Latin America will boost trade, Beatrice Rangel, an economist and Venezuelan politician based in Miami, advises the summit.

"The governor wants to reposition Florida as the state that allows Latin American investors to enjoy the advantages of two worlds: the organizational and business platform of the United States and the Latino culture," he explained. "It also considers it important that Florida continue to be seen as the beacon that promotes democracy and the rule of law throughout the hemisphere; That is why the OAS Secretary General, who has done more work to give effect to the Inter-American Democratic Charter, opens the summit. "

Together with the top representative of the OAS, Admiral Kurt W. Tidd, head of the United States Southern Command, will participate in the conference; Senator Marco Rubio, legislators Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Mario Díaz-Balart, Carlos Curbelo and Francis Rooney, as well as former legislator Lincoln Díaz-Balart and Archbishop of Miami, Thomas Wenski.