Protectionism Would Hurt US, Mexico Economy

Mexican Finance Minister Jose Antonio Meade warned in an interview Saturday that adopting protectionist measures would hurt both the US and Mexican economies, MarketWatch reported. The recent rise of antitrade political forces around the world, particularly in the US where Donald Trump won the Republican presidential nomination on a protectionist platform, has worried finance ministers and central bankers assembled in Washington for the fall meetings of the International Monetary Fund. That concern is particularly acute in Mexico, where exports account for about 35% of the economy. Trump has threatened to pull the US out of the North American Free Trade Agreement if elected, ending a 22-year-old trade pact that has helped open up the Mexican economy. US-Mexico trade has evolved significantly since the early days of Nafta, Meade said. Rather than trading finished goods, North American countries now move products across borders multiple times before they are ready for their final sale. “Every time Mexico exports a dollar, 40 cents of it comes out of goods produced within the US,” he said.