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An International Economy

Latinos, since the 1960's, have expanded the South Florida economy into a Latin hub for international banking, trade, tourism, and commerce. 

The Miami Port is the 2nd most important port in the U.S for Latin American trade. It is a substantial source of revenue for Miami as it imports about 10 million tons of cargo a year. In 2014, 50% of its shipping traffic was to and from the Americas and the Caribbean. 

Latin Americans are increasingly investing and depositing their money in the numerous international banks that have opened up in Miami.  The private banking in South Florida, which as of 2015, consisted of 13 investment banks, 19 private equity firms, 60 hedge funds, and 63 wealth management firms, manages around $300 billion. One of the most important banks in Miami, in terms of Latin investment banking, is Morgan Stanley.

The Miami International Airport connects the economies and people of Latin America with those of Miami. This airport serves 19.4 million international passengers and 1.8 million tons of cargo a year. 

Julian Jaramillo (uncle) is the founder of Legacy Flowers, a company that imports and commercializes flowers, especially from Colombia. The flower industry heavily relies on Miami's infrastructure and location in order to be able to move substantial amounts of volume from Latin America to the whole U.S ,and in turn, the Miami economy greatly benefits from this industry as it generates countless jobs and revenue for local companies. 

Below is the interview (split into 2 consecutive parts) of Julian Jaramillo. Since this interview was conducted in Spanish, to the right of the audio is a word document with the English transcript.

The Flower Industry & the Miami Economy #1 -
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The Flower Industry & the Miami Economy #2 -
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Cristian Serna works out of Bogotá, Colombia for Cargolux Airlines International, Korean Air, and Aeromexico Cargo. He is manages the cargo that Bogotá's airport, El Dorado, exports and imports every day. Most of the cargo that Colombia exports consists of flowers and all flowers on the U.S market pass through Miami International Airport.

Below is the interview (split into 2 consecutive parts) of Cristian Serna. Since this interview was conducted in Spanish, to the right of the audio is a word document with the English transcript.

The Colombian Flower Industry and Miami #1 -
00:00 / 00:00
The Colombian Flower Industry and Miami #2 -
00:00 / 00:00
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