Iran nuclear deal exit: Impact on business community still uncertain
President Donald Trump’s decision to exit the Iran nuclear deal and reinstate hardline sanctions on Tehran -- and possibly any country that continues to do business with it -- could send reverberations throughout the business community. But Port of Long Beach Executive Director Mario Cordero is still unsure how the container port will be affected.
“We’ll continue to watch this very closely in terms of how it impacts the Port of Long Beach,” Cordero told FOX Business’ Liz Claman during an interview on Tuesday.
After months of speculation, Trump announced Tuesday that Washington would withdraw from the Obama-era foreign policy initiative, bucking U.S. allies and leaving it uncertain how Tehran would respond. He heavily criticized the plan, saying it “was a horrible, one-sided deal that should have never, ever been made.”
Now, a restoration of some previous sanctions will go into effect after a 90-day countdown, with the rest kicking in after a 180-day retraction period, according to the Treasury Department.
Although the Port of Long Beach -- the second largest in the U.S. -- doesn’t directly receive oil from the Middle East, it does receive imports from countries that may continue to trade with Iran, in spite of the U.S. withdrawal from the deal.
The top five foreign importers into the port are China, South Korea, Vietnam, Japan and Taiwan.
“We do have a crude oil portfolio, so there is cause for concern,” Cordero said, although he added, “But with regard to crude oil, most of it comes with Alaska.”