Port Manatee and Guatemala are seeking to build upon their already significant relationship in the wake of a visit from Guatemalan Trade Commissioner Dunia Miranda-Mauri.Already ranked among Port Manatee’s top five trade partners, Guatemala exports fresh bananas, pineapples, melons and plantains, as well as frozen pineapple juice, into Port Manatee, while imports to Guatemala from the Central Florida Gulf Coast port are led by Kraft linerboard, vehicles, auto parts and lubricating oils.Vanessa Baugh, chairwoman of the Manatee County Port Authority, said she welcomes the opportunity to enhance commercial ties between Port Manatee and Central America’s most populous nation.Mirandi-Mauri’s trip to Manatee County is among several such in-person visits to be coordinated by the International Trade Hub at Port Manatee since it began operation in 2014 to boost worldwide links for the county, port and local business interests.Port Manatee is the closest US deepwater seaport to the expanded Panama Canal, with ten 40-foot-draft berths serving container, bulk, breakbulk, heavylift, project and general cargo customers. The port generates more than $2.3 billion in annual economic impact for the local community, while supporting more than 24,000 jobs, without levying ad-valorem taxes.

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