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Time - Man of the Year
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1993-04-08
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THE WEEK, Page 15BUSINESSThe Barriers Come Tumbling Down
Negotiators prepare to sign the North American Free Trade
Agreement
It survived snags over textiles, avocados and chickens and
still faces a stiff test in Congress. After 14 months of almost
nonstop and frequently contentious haggling, negotiators for the
U.S., Canada and Mexico were poised to sign the North American
Free Trade Agreement, which would bind 363 million consumers
into the world's largest trading zone with a combined gross
domestic product of more than $6 trillion.
The pact's big winner will probably be Mexico, which lags
behind its trading partners in industrial development.
Economists say Mexico could gain 600,000 primarily industrial
jobs by 1995 as the agreement rolls back tariffs and reduces
restrictive quotas that hobble the country's exports.
Negotiators also expect the U.S. and Canada to profit from an
explosion in sales to the Mexican market. But U.S. labor leaders
argue that tens of thousands of American workers could lose
their jobs as companies shift production to Mexico to cash in
on industrial wage rates that are roughly one-sixth those north
of the Rio Grande.
The Bush Administration views a completed pact as a major
accomplishment and as something to boast about in the fall
campaign. Industry groups will evaluate terms of the agreement
and offer recommendations before it goes to Congress, where the
debate promises to be contentious. Some Democratic lawmakers
charge that the pact lacks safeguards for American jobs and want
programs to retrain displaced workers and protect the
environment. Congress is expected to delay serious discussion
until after the elections and then put the deal to a vote
sometime early next year.