Short description:

This new book brings together contributions from recognized experts in trade policy, discussing and evaluating economic integration in the Western Hemisphere and the alternative trade strategies being pursued in this area.

Long description:

This new book brings together contributions from recognized experts in trade policy, discussing and evaluating economic integration in the Western Hemisphere, the alternative trade strategies being pursued in this area and Latin American relationships with United States and Canada.

These essays provide progress reports concerning the different regional and sub-regional groupings that have developed within the hemisphere and discuss the inter-relationships of Western Hemispheric trading arrangement with the multilateral trading systems. The difficulties encountered in hemispheric trade negotiations and the implications for the countries involved are also considered.

This book will be of great interest to students and researchers engaged with international trade and economic policy, as well as policy specialists in business organizations and government.

"This book provides a comprehensive account of the sub-regional integration agreements in the Americas. These initiatives have become increasingly important given the demise of the FTAA and the on-going stalemate in multilateral trade negotiations. The book covers the subject from three distinct levels of analysis (strategy, implementation and outcomes). This informative volume is of benefit for all those interested in the current state of trade negotiations and regional integration, practitioners and non-practitioners alike." Esteban Pérez Caldentey (Economic Commission For Latin America and the Caribbean)

Table of Contents:

Section 1: Introduction Supachai Panitchpakdi Section 2: New Trade Strategies in the Americas. The Past 20 years of Trade Policy: What Have We Learned so far and What are the Lessons for Latin America? Michael Hart. New Trade Strategies in the Americas Sherry Stephenson. The FTAA-WTO Divide: The Political Economy of Low Ambition Mario A. Marconini. Trade Liberalization as a Moral Imperative Richard Fisher Section 3: Regional and Sub-regional Agreements in the Western Hemisphere. NAFTA Regionalism in North America: NAFTA and the Mexican Case Victor Lopez Villafane and Mariana Rangel Padilla. CACM Central America in a Free Trade Area for the Americas Alberto Trejos. MERCOSUR MERCOSUR and US: No Finishing Date Felipe Frydman. Caribbean: The Caribbean Community - Integration among Small States Anneke Jessen. Other Trends in Latin American Integration: An Overview Osvaldo Rosales, Jose E. Duran Lima, Sebastian Saez Section 4: Results of North American and Hemispheric Trade Negotiations. Does the FTAA Have a Future? Jeffrey Schott. Competing for the US Import Market: NAFTA and Non-NAFTA Countries Jorge Chami Batista. Beyond FTAs: Deepening North American Integration Wendy Dobson Section 5: Interaction of Regional and Global Trade Agreements. Interactions of Regional and Global Trade Agreements Sylvia Ostry. Interactions between Regional and Global Trade Agreements Gary Hufbauer. Cleaning up the Spaghetti Bowl John Curtis. Isolation, Intervention, and Exchange Rights: Principles in Trade Theory Earl Grinols Section 6: Afterword Joseph McKinney, H. Stephen Gardner