What are the Pros and Cons of NAFTA?
NAFTA provided an immense benefit to shareholders. Investment capital in all three countries got a roughly 5% boost from increased North American trade in the 1990s. So if you already had money, you made more money. There was an initial manufacturing boom in Mexico as industrial factories sprouted in the border zones. Much of this trade has since shifted to China, however. Small-scale farmers in Mexico were very badly hit. Many small farmers went bust because subsidized American corn from large US farms was dumped onto the Mexican market. This led to many Mexicans seeking work in the US, which is ironic considering that NAFTA was initially thought up by an American panel of advisers to reduce immigration into the US. So, bottom line, NAFTA is like any free trade deal. Capital wins. Consumers win. Certain protected sectors (organized labor, small-scale farmers) lose.
