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 Business News | December 2005 
U.S. Treasury Secretary Lauds Mexico for Strong Macroeconomic Policies
 Lisa J. Adams - Associated Press
Mexico City – U.S. Treasury Secretary John W. Snow lauded Mexico on Thursday for instituting strong macroeconomic policies, saying that under the leadership of President Vicente Fox and Mexican Treasury Secretary Francisco Gil, "the finances of Mexico have improved dramatically."
Snow also said it would not matter to Mexico's economy if Fox's conservative government were replaced by a leftist administration next year as long as the new administration continues with "good (economic) policies."
In a joint news conference with Gil, Snow commended Mexico for being an economic leader in Latin America, saying "its voice is important for the region."
The U.S. Treasury secretary cited Mexico's debt and deficit reduction, low inflation rates, the strengthening of its mortgage market, its support for free trade, the creation of 750,000 jobs over the past year, and a 17 percent reduction in poverty since the North American Free Trade Agreement went into effect in 1994.
"There is a terrifically, strong, good record here that ought to be taken note of," Snow said, adding that the government had put in place "much stronger, more effective finance regulations" than those that were in place when Fox took office in 2000.
Snow and Gil held a series of meetings with Fox and other U.S. and Mexican financial officials throughout the day Thursday, also discussing ways to further lower the fees for Mexican residents of the U.S. who send remittances to relatives back home – a nearly US$20 billion (euro16.7 billion) market, Snow noted.
Gil said the cost of sending remittances has been reduced by two-thirds in the past five years, in part thanks to Snow's efforts to urge U.S. banks to accept I.D.s issued to Mexican migrants by Mexican consulates in the U.S., allowing them to open bank accounts.
The two governments also discussed their desire to work with the Inter-American Development Bank on reforms that would expand financing to and address the debt problems of the poorest countries in the region, both officials said.
And they pledged to work with other nations in the region to build an "Infrastructure Facility of the Americas," a rating system for project proposals that could "help unlock large flows of private finance for infrastructure by improving investor information," according to a joint statement issued by the two governments.
Snow said Mexico should be able to maintain its strong economic record following the 2006 presidential elections, regardless of which party takes office, because "economic stability depends on the continuation of good policies."
"If good policies are continued as I hope they would be, then Mexico can continue to enjoy the benefits of economic stability," he said.
Some have expressed concern that the country's economic fortunes could turn if the election is won by former Mexico City Mayor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a leftist politician who has proposed a return to more state-centered economic policies.
Also on Thursday, Snow and Gil said they discussed the implementation of new programs to tackle money laundering and drug trafficking on both sides of the border, and reviewed the new Security & Prosperity Partnership of North America that the U.S. and Mexico signed with Canada earlier this year to strengthen the successes of NAFTA.
During the past 11 years, two-way Mexico-U.S. trade increased threefold to about US$270 billion (euro225 billion) in 2004, the joint statement said. |
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