Simons Chase 
by Fulton Armstrong, a Research Fellow at the Center for Latin American and Latino Studies. This is the last of four policy briefs that he has written as part of the Center’s Cuba Initiative, carried out with support from the Christopher Reynolds Foundation. For earlier policy briefs from the series, please visit the Center for … Read more
The wreckage in the US retail landscape is growing. Virtually every segment of the industry is feeling the impact of being squeezed between two intensely heated plates of steel. On the one side is e-commerce – dominated by Amazon – and on the other side a profound shift in consumer behavior. Research has long suggested … Read more
Discovered by Christopher Columbus in the 15th century, Cuba and the Dominican Republic (DR) share a history unlike any other in the world – and the similarities extend into common economic characteristics that today make them the topic of much discussion about how the future will unfold as Cuba’s re-integration into the global economy gathers … Read more
The Cuba Investment Forum – to be held in Ft. Lauderdale on May 12th – promises to be the most timely and informative Cuba investment conference of the year. US-Cuba relations have improved dramatically in the last 18 months, but the US embargo against Cuba remains in place. Most transactions between the US, or persons … Read more
By Simons Chase Argentina defaulted on more than $80 billion of debt in 2001, the largest sovereign default at the time. For three months in 2012, the three-masted Libertad, an Argentine naval ship and the flagship of her fleet, was detained in Ghana following legal action by US-based hedge fund, Elliot Capital Management, as it … Read more
Karl Lagerfeld, head designer and creative director of the fashion house Chanel, is in Havana this month to present Chanel’s 2017 resort collection. The Chanel fashion event begins tomorrow with its new Cruise Ship Collection. Previously the company held its traditional parade in other exotic places like Dubai, Singapore and South Korea. Also, today marks the … Read more
Frank Del Rio visited Cuba last year for the first time in 54 years, he told an audience at Travel Weekly’s 2015 CruiseWorld. He is the only one of the major cruise company CEOs born in Cuba, having immigrated to the US in 1961 following the events surrounding the Bay of Pigs debacle. “There may … Read more
On a bright February morning amid a mild westerly breeze, a newly painted plane sticks out like a fresh blade of grass as it parks and prepares to load passengers on the tarmac of Toussaint Louverture International Airport in Port-au-Price, Haiti. Philippe Bayard, the CEO and founder of Sunrise Airways, Haiti’s only Haitian-owned airline, climbs … Read more
Citing improved relations between Cuba and the US, Meliá Hotels recently reported impressive 2015 financial performance from its Cuba revenue base of $435.4 million (management revenue included €19.5 million generated by third-party hotel management in Cuba). The Spanish hotel company was one of the first foreign hotel companies to begin operations in Cuba after the … Read more
Carnival Corporation today announced that the company is continuing discussions with Cuba to allow its Cuba cruises to carry all travelers regardless of their country of origin. A Cuban law from the Cold War era restricts sea travel to Cuba for Cuba-born Americans. Fathom will begin sailing its 704-passenger Adonia luxury cruise ship to Cuba … Read more
