Cuban News Agency reported that the exports of the Cuban metallurgical industry SIME reached a sales record for the third consecutive year in 2007 with CUP 139 million.

Ms Adriana Barcelo vice minister of SIME said that this figure represents a 124% achievement of the plan and it is 19% higher than in 2006. She added that the main destinations of these exports were the Netherlands, the Dominican Republic, Spain, Venezuela and Honduras.

Ms Barcelo noted that products of higher demand include steel and its derivatives, scrap iron, aluminum bars, spare parts, medical equipment and others.