US Investments In The Caribbean - 2020-2023
While the Donald Trump administration has begun dictating to the Caribbean regarding what doctors it can depend on to help the poor, data from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), shows that U.S. investments in the Caribbean remains far less than China, making the Chinese government a stronghold in the region and around the world.
US investments in the Caribbean totaled $727.9 million in 2023, but these funds were primarily concentrated in British Caribbean financial hubs such as Bermuda and the Cayman Islands, rather than in direct economic development. Much of its FDI flows into financial services and corporate sectors, with less direct impact on infrastructure, tourism, or energy development.
U.S. Direct Investment (in millions)
China’s Growing Economic Influence
In contrast, China has injected over $10 billion into the Caribbean, focusing on tourism, transportation, agriculture, and energy, sectors that have a direct economic impact on local communities. Unlike the U.S., which primarily invests in financial centers, China is actively building roads, hotels, ports, and energy projects, strengthening its economic ties with Caribbean governments.
Meanwhile, the U.S. approach in the Caribbean, including with this new administration, is now on diplomatic pressures and policy enforcement rather than direct economic investments given the massive cuts at USAID and wrapping of the agency into the State Department. Recent tensions over Cuban medical missions have further strained U.S.-Caribbean relations, as several CARICOM leaders have rejected U.S. claims of forced labor, defending their agreements with Cuba as legitimate healthcare exchanges.
The Biden administration had requested $2.2 billion in USAID assistance for the Caribbean and Latin America in the 2025 fiscal year, so the Elon Musk DOGE cuts of USAID will significantly impact U.S. influence in the region even further.
If the U.S. continues its insular America’s First policy and does not shift its investment focus toward direct economic development in its third border, China will continue to gain ground as the region’s leading economic partner. Major Chinese projects recently, include the development of a $3 billion deep-water port on Grand Bahama, just 55 miles from the U.S. mainland, and a $600 million investment to improve the Dominican Republic's electricity grid. According to Forbes, China is funding $2.1 billion worth of projects in Jamaica and $773 million in Suriname.
US Senators
Meanwhile, U.S. Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) are calling on Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to strengthen U.S. engagement with Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) nations in reviewing foreign investments. The senators want the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) to help LAC countries develop similar mechanisms to safeguard regional security, as China increases investments in space, infrastructure, critical minerals, and energy.
Bennet and Cornyn emphasized that China, Russia, and Iran are expanding their influence in the region. They urged the U.S. to build on its recent agreement with Mexico and assist other LAC nations in establishing foreign investment screening systems to protect economic and national security.
The senators noted that China has surpassed the U.S. as South America's top trading partner and is the second-largest for Latin America overall.
Bennet and Cornyn, along with bipartisan colleagues, have introduced legislation to restrict U.S. investments in China’s advanced technology sector and continue to push the Americas Act, aimed at countering China’s economic influence in the region.