Istmo Centroamericano: competitividad e integración regional, 2001-2003

Compras governamentais: políticas e procedimentos na Organização Mundial de Comércio, União Européia, NAFTA, Estados Unidos e Brasil

O aprofundamento das negociações entre os 34 países que comporão a ALCA mostrou a importância da realização de avaliações sobre normas e procedimentos em compras governamentais adotados em alguns blocos de comércio referenciais, como é o caso da União Européia, do Acordo de Compras Governamentais da OMC e do capítulo sobre compras governamentais do NAFTA. Revela-se, ainda, de primordial interesse avaliar a política de aquisições governamentais adotada na legislação dos Estados Unidos, o maior parceiro da ALCA, pela abrangência que esta assume ao determinar a preferência, nas aquisiçõe…

Latin America and the Caribbean in the World Economy 2001-2002

The 2001-2002 edition of Latin America and theCaribbean in the world economy is divided into three parts. The first part, which concerns international conditions and external trade trends in Latin America and the Caribbean (chapters I, II, III and IV);, analyses the main features of the current international environment and their impact on the region's economies, as well as international trade trends in the various countries in 2001 and in the initial quarters of 2002. Chapter III considers some structural relationships that have emerged in the international integration of the different L…

A decade of light and shadow: Latin America and the Caribbean in the 1990s

Foreword The 1990s were unquestionably a time of transition and reorientation in several aspects of Latin America and the Caribbean's economic, social and political development. As in any period with these characteristics, the effects of long-standing processes mingled and interacted with incipient change. When the decade ended, ECLAC wished to contribute to the evaluation of the main events that marked the consolidation of reform in the region, recognizing of course that the speed of progress varied from country to country and from sector to sector. This publication offers an analysis of…

The competitiveness of agrifoods in Central American and Caribbean countries in the context of trade liberalization

This study evaluates aspects of ex-post competitiveness, trade specialization, the dynamics of import markets, the main competitor countries, and trade protection in the six Central American and eight Caribbean countries and their main destination markets, the European Union (EU); and the United States. Today every one of these countries is involved in regional integration initiatives, free trade agreements and multilateral trade liberalization. The countries of Central America and the Caribbean alike enjoy some degree of preferential access to their destination markets. This analysis leads to…

E-commerce environment and trade promotion for Latin America: policy implications from East Asian and advanced economies' experiences

In the late of 1990s, when use of the Internet began to spread to almost all of the activities undertaken by people and businesses around the world, Internet-based electronic commerce was expected to introduce revolutionary innovations in businesses, management and international trade. In particular, information-sharing with clients and the clients of clients, and coordination of business activities with trade partners based on shared information, or the so-called supply chain management (SCM), were expected to be introduced by firms in order to dramatically reduce business costs and establish…

Normas de origen y procedimientos para su administración en América Latina

Desde el punto de vista conceptual, las reglas de origen corresponden a un término económico que se refiere a una normativa definida para identificar con precisión la procedencia de un bien importado. Como toda norma, tiene asociados procedimientos operacionales, que se relacionan de manera directa con costos de transacción en dos niveles. El primero radica en que la administración de las reglas de origen tiene impactos económicos para el sector público, que debe garantizar el cabal cumplimiento de su función fiscalizadora del comercio exterior de bienes, así como minimizar el gasto presupuest…

Trade between Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Central American Common Market (CACM) countries: the role to play for ports and shipping services

Abstract Trade between the Central American Common Market (CACM) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is very low. Only 0.2% of the two groups' trade is between them. A possible explanation for this might be a supposed lack of adequate transport services. This report analyzes if there exists a potential to promote inter-subregional trade by improving transport services. It is found that in fact there does not exist a lack of direct services. 17% of services that call in one of the subregions also call in the other. In addition, due to the increase in transshipment services, a…

Asimetrías y cooperación en el Area de Libre Comercio de las Américas

Resumen El posible Acuerdo de Libre Comercio de las Américas(ALCA), busca vincular a los países de América Latina y el Caribe(con excepción de Cuba) con Canadá y los Estados Unidos, en lo que constituirá el área de libre comercio más grande del mundo. Dadas las enormes asimetrías de tamaño y nivel de desarrollo entre los países participantes, el gran desafío de este ambicioso y complejo proceso será que todos los países, sobre todo los más pequeños y menos desarrollados, puedan beneficiarse de la liberalización hemisférica del comercio. En este ensayo se argumenta que la posibilidad de que el …

Asymmetries and cooperation in the Free Trade Area of the Americas

Abstract The prospective Free Trade Agreement of the Americas seeks to link the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (with the exception of Cuba); with Canada and the United States, thereby forming the largest free trade area in the world. Given the huge asymmetries in the size and level of development of participating countries, the major challenge in this ambitious and complex process will be to ensure that all countries, especially the smallest and least developed ones, benefit from trade liberalization within the hemisphere. This study argues that whether FTAA translates into benef…

Analysis of trade flows between Puerto Rico and CARICOM and prospects for integration

Puerto Rico and Caribbean Community (CARICOM); Caribbean countries share important common characteristics. They are open economies and while their trade specialization patterns are heterogenous, historical, institutional and geographical factors have shaped export and import linkages that are closely tied to those of the United States and Western Europe. CARICOM Caribbean economies and Puerto Rico also adopted, early on, a common approach to development, that of 'industrialisation by invitation'. Its main elements included fiscal incentives, the attraction of foreign direct investmen…

Developments in relation to the proposal for securing the international recognition of the Caribbean sea as a special area in the context of sustainable development

Our Caribbean civilisation has been very much shaped by the sea. The evidence of this in our region abounds from time immemorial: the peopling of our Caribbean; its trading; its economy and commerce, ancient and modern; its daily living and eating; its culture and its thinking. All these facets of life and production have been moulded, even determined, by the sea. Yet, strangely our Caribbean civilisation has yet to reflect in public policy the real value and significance of the sea which joins us all. To be sure, each country in the region has its own ministry of fisheries but each m…

Latin America and the Caribbean in the World Economy 2001-2002

La edición 2001-2002 del Panorama de la inserción internacional de América Latina y el Caribe se divide en tres partes. En la primera, dedicada a la situación internacional y al comercio internacional de América Latina y el Caribe (capítulos I, II y III); se analizan los principales componentes de la coyuntura internacional y su incidencia en las economías de la región, y el comercio internacional de los diferentes países en 2001 así como en los primeros trimestres de 2002. En el capítulo III se examinan algunas relaciones estructurales de la inserción internacional de los varios países de Am…

La competitividad agroalimentaria de los países de América Central y el Caribe en una perspectiva de liberalización comercial

Resumen En este documento se analiza, para los seis países centroamericanos, los ocho caribeños y los mercados de destino más importantes (la Unión Europea (UE); y los Estados Unidos);,aspectos de la competitividad ex-post, de la especialización comercial, de la dinámica de los mercados importadores, de la identificación de los principales países competidores y de la protección comercial. Todos estos países están actualmente involucrados en iniciativas de integración regional, en acuerdos de libre comercio y en el proceso de liberalización comercial multilateral. Tanto los países centroamerica…

La competitividad de la industria maquiladora de exportación en Honduras. Condiciones y retos ante el CAFTA

El documento es resultado de una amplia investigación realizada durante 2003 en la que se realizaron reuniones y entrevistas con más de 120 personas en Honduras, de las cuales 53 fueron entrevistas a empresas. Adicionalmente se entrevistaron numerosos funcionarios de los sectores privado y público a nivel municipal, regional y nacional, expertos, sindicalistas y otras personas vinculadas a la Industria Maquiladora de Exportación (IME). El documento tiene dos principales objetivos: por un lado, analizar con detalle las condiciones de la competitividad de la IME en Honduras, particularmen…

United States-Latin America and the Caribbean trade developments, 2002

This document provides an overview of the most relevant developments in United States trade policy relating to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2002. U.S. policy continued to promote trade liberalization through advancing negotiations on multiple fronts- globally (WTO), regionally (FTAA) and bilaterally or sub regionally- with a view that the various negotiations are mutually reinforcing and seek to create a constructive competition for liberalization among trade partners. The passage of Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) included in the Trade Act of August 2002 enhanced the U.S. Adminis…

Nota técnica sobre alguns efeitos do NAFTA para as exportaçses brasileiras

Com a disponibilidade de novos dados de comércio foi possível repetir o exercício do estudo R.Baumann, A.M.Franco (2002), Algumas Implicações do NAFTA para a Participação do Brasil na ALCA para o período 1998-2001, que compreende os efeitos da desvalorização cambial ocorrida a partir do início de 1999 (assim como os efeitos da retração da atividade interna na economia brasileira, que terá contribuído até certo ponto via oferta de excedente exportável). Como resultado, obtém-se um cenário razoavelmente distinto, sugerindo que para alguns setores houve efetivamente uma resposta positiva ex…