Business Profile
Economy
The main components of Guam’s economy are tourism and the US military for whom the island is a vital staging post for operations through the Pacific region. Tourism has expanded rapidly despite the island’s remote location and small size: Guam now receives over one million visitors annually, of whom 90 per cent come from Japan. A range of crops, including maize, cassava, bananas and coconuts, are grown for domestic consumption. Exports include copra, fish and handmade goods. Industry is limited to a petroleum refinery and a handful of light manufacturing operations. Guam is also an important re-export centre for distribution of goods throughout the Pacific, particularly to Micronesia, and this provides a large proportion of its export income.
Government policy presently concentrates on attracting foreign investment, principally from Asia, and has been examining the country’s potential as an offshore financial centre. However, the development of the latter is not favoured by the extensive competition in the Pacific and Guam’s tax laws.
Commercial Information
The following organisation can offer advice: Guam Chamber of Commerce, 173 Aspinall Avenue, Ada Plaza Center, Suite 101, Hagåtña, GU 96910 (tel: 472 6311 or 472 8001; fax: 472 6202; e-mail: gchamber@guamchamber.com.gu; website: www.guamchamber.com.gu).
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