| | |  Business News | September 2008 
Calderon Warns Changing Nafta Could Hurt US, Mexico Economies
 Fabiola Moura - Bloomberg
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Mexican President Felipe Calderon called on the U.S. to preserve the North American Free Trade Agreement and increase competitiveness with Europe and Asia, saying any renegotiation could harm both countries' economies.
"The choice is between a future of integration and success and a future of distrust and resentment," Calderon said during a speech last night at a Foreign Policy Association dinner in New York. "If any renegotiation worsens conditions in Mexico, that will be very bad for the U.S."
U.S. critics of free trade have been more vocal this year as confidence in the economy erodes, and presidential candidate Barack Obama has said Nafta should be changed to include labor and environmental standards. While Calderon vowed to "establish a better relationship with the new government" no matter who wins, he added that he had "some concerns looking at the American campaign and the American people."
He warned against protectionism and said there needs to be "more investment in Mexico, to get more jobs for Mexicans in Mexico."
Calderon, 46, said North America is losing competitiveness to Europe and Asia by not building on the benefits of Nafta since it lowered trade barriers between the U.S., Canada and Mexico in 1994.
Mexico's "labor-intensive" economy compliments America's "capital-intensive" economy, and the two countries need to work harder to integrate their markets, Calderon said.
Calderon also called on the U.S. to help solve the problem of drug and weapons trafficking across the common border. "We are paying a very high cost due to the consumption of drugs in the U.S.," Calderon said. "It is an American problem as well."
The Mexican president is scheduled to speak today at the United Nations General Assembly.
To contact the reporter on this story: Fabiola Moura in New York at fdemoura(at)bloomberg.net |
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