Santo Domingo.- U.S.-based UPS, the world's largest package delivery company, reports that Dominican flower exports to the United States and Europe nearly tripled last year, according to Latin Business Chronicle. "The Dominican Republic nearly tripled their exports from 2007 to 2008," says Erika Mayor-Diaz, a Latin America spokeswoman for UPS.

Although the Dominican Republic lags larger flower exporters like Colombia, Ecuador and Costa Rica, its exports to the United States alone are growing strongly. Flower exports from the Dominican Republic to the United States increased 28.9 percent to $6.0 million, according to a Latin Business Chronicle analysis of US Census Bureau data.

Colombia dominated the flower trade, exporting flowers worth $519.3 million to the United States, an increase of 14.0 percent from 2006. All in all, the top four Latin American flower exporters to the United States shipped flowers for a total of $745.3 million, an increase of 19.6 percent from 2006, according to a Latin Business Chronicle.

More information at http://www.latinbusinesschronicle.com/app/article.aspx?id=2156