Has Trump’s First 100 Days in Office Impacted The Bahamas?

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NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The first 100 days for United States president Donald Trump shows him trending downward in U.S. polls as his presidency has been marked by aggressive polices, a trade war with some of the country’s biggest trading partners and sudden and shocking executive orders.

But what’s been the impact on The Bahamas? Risks to the Bahamian economy have increased in light of the aggressive tariff policy by the Trump administration, particularly the 10% tariff imposed on the region.

Earlier this month, the tariff that was slated to take effect on April 5 was applied to over 100 countries.

John Rolle – Governor of Central Bank of The Bahamas

“The downside risk facing the economy has increased, particularly in light of the tariffs imposed by the United States and uncertainty over how trade policy tension between the U.S. and its major trading partners will be resolved.“

While there haven’t been any concrete economic changes due to the Trump administration’s policies, economist Zhivargo Laing said should his aggressive tariff rollout continue, then there will be a significant impact on The Bahamas.

The Bahamas recently dodged a bullet after the United States trade representative decided to exempt the Caribbean from new fees on Chinese-built and Chinese-owned shipping vessels.

Industry experts warned it would’ve dealt a devastating blow to the industry.

Laing says it would hit the country hard.

Zhivargo Laing – Economist

“The tariff policy which now applies higher tariffs to almost every country in the world including our own at a level of 10% and to the extent that he has applied significant tariffs to for instance China to which many manufactured goods that come into the United States and end up in The Bahamas might not realize that those can have a significant impact.”

Recent polls show president Trump’s approval is the lowest approval of any president in the last 80 years during this juncture in their term.

And while economists project the tariff war could end in a U.S recession, Laing says it may not impact The Bahamas.

Zhivargo Laing – Economist

“There is nothing to date that points to the likelihood of having an impact for The Bahamas for the next two years or so. So we would have to watch and see how things materialize because to be honest, these policies are all over the place, one day they are on and one day they are off and we really don’t know, and it’s really that uncertainty that’s making the market more skiddish than anything else.”