From unilateral liberalization to regional free trade agreements: a Latin America perspective

This paper provides an overview of changes in Latin American trade regime. The inward-looking import substitution industrialization (ISI) approach to development was replaced in the 1990s by an outward-looking strategy. The protectionist policies of the ISI strategy generated an anti-export bias, bu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Economic change and restructuring 2009, Vol.42 (1-2), p.85-103
Main Author: Meller, Patricio
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
20th century
Bias
Developed countries
Development Economics
Development strategies
Economic development
Economic Growth
Economic Policy
Economic reform
Economics
Economics and Finance
Exports
Free trade
Free trade agreements
GDP
Gross Domestic Product
Import liberalization
Imports
Income distribution
Industrial development
International Economics
International trade
Latin America
Latin American history
Macroeconomics/Monetary Economics//Financial Economics
Natural resources
Political Economy/Economic Systems
Populism
Regional integration
Regions
Trade agreements
Trade liberalization
Trade relations
Unilateralism
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Summary:This paper provides an overview of changes in Latin American trade regime. The inward-looking import substitution industrialization (ISI) approach to development was replaced in the 1990s by an outward-looking strategy. The protectionist policies of the ISI strategy generated an anti-export bias, but unilateral trade liberalization (UTL) reduced this bias considerably. An issue discussed is why the pro-ISI consensus of the 1960s was replaced by the pro-export consensus of the 1990s? There has been a surprising proliferation of (bilateral) free trade agreements (FTAs) during the 1990s. In the paper it is argued that UTL and FTAs are complementary strategies. Latin America has comparative advantages in natural resources. A new debate over the development strategy has emerged. Information and communication technologies (ICT) are seen as crucial to a country’s growth in the twenty-first century. So, how can Latin American countries incorporate such technologies into their economies. Is it possible to make the leap from producing natural resources to producing ICT? In today’s globalized world, it is essential for Latin American countries to increase its exports. This paper reviews actions on different fronts; some that should be carried at the domestic level, and also, measures at the external level which require that the developed countries provide better market access to Latin American exports.
ISSN:1573-9414
1574-0277
DOI:10.1007/s10644-008-9061-5