The Caribbean Islands lie to the South-east of North America, to the East of Central America and to the North of South America. By international standards, Caribbean Islands are rich in natural resources. The individual economies of the Caribbean islands are generally open to free trade. While their export bases are fairly limited, many islands are beginning to diversify their industries. Sugar, bananas, eggplant and flowers are exported from many islands and other crops are still grown exclusively for domestic use. The distillation and large-scale export of rum, a well-known island product, takes place on most islands where sugarcane is grown.
