IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ibn/assjnl/v15y2019i6p7.html

NAFTA Country Impacts: 25 Years After Implementation

Author

Listed:
  • Samuel D. Barrows

Abstract

This study reviews research on various aspects of trade, free trade agreements, and NAFTA specifically. With the twenty-fifth anniversary of the NAFTA enactment in January of 2019 between Canada, Mexico and the U.S., it is an opportune time to review some of the history and expectations leading up to the agreement. The economic performances of the three countries are also evaluated over the twenty-five year study time frame. Eleven metrics are used to make a general assessment as to whether the actual country performances matched the expectations. Based on the data, NAFTA was a positive influence on the three countries. Tariffs were reduced; FDI was increased; trade grew between the three countries especially intermediate trade related to supply chains; savings rates increased; inflation was reduced; unemployment also fell for two of the three countries while GDP per person soared for those same two countries. In summary, NAFTA was a success.

Suggested Citation

  • Samuel D. Barrows, 2019. "NAFTA Country Impacts: 25 Years After Implementation," Asian Social Science, Canadian Center of Science and Education, vol. 15(6), pages 1-7, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:ibn:assjnl:v:15:y:2019:i:6:p:7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/ass/article/download/0/0/39640/40548
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://ccsenet.org/journal/index.php/ass/article/view/0/39640
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shushanik Hakobyan & John McLaren, 2017. "NAFTA and the Gender Wage Gap," Upjohn Working Papers 17-270, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    2. Shushanik Hakobyan & John McLaren, 2016. "Looking for Local Labor Market Effects of NAFTA," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 98(4), pages 728-741, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Noghanibehambari, Hamid, 2025. "Revealed comparative disadvantage of infants: Exposure to NAFTA and birth outcomes," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 155(C).
    2. Dani Rodrik, 2018. "Populism and the economics of globalization," Journal of International Business Policy, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 1(1), pages 12-33, June.
    3. David H. Autor & David Dorn & Gordon H. Hanson & Jae Song, 2014. "Trade Adjustment: Worker-Level Evidence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 129(4), pages 1799-1860.
    4. Dorn, David & Autor, David & Hanson, Gordon, 2017. "When Work Disappears: Manufacturing Decline and the Falling Marriage-Market Value of Men," CEPR Discussion Papers 11878, Centre for Economic Policy Research.
    5. Ulyssea, Gabriel & Ponczek, Vladimir, 2018. "Enforcement of Labor Regulation and the Labor Market Effects of Trade: Evidence from Brazil," IZA Discussion Papers 11783, IZA Network @ LISER.
    6. Mestieri, Martí & Basco, Sergi & Smagghue, Gabriel & Liegey, Maxime, 2020. "The Heterogeneous Effects of Trade across Occupations: A Test of the Stolper-Samuelson Theorem," CEPR Discussion Papers 15186, Centre for Economic Policy Research.
    7. Keller, Wolfgang & Utar, Hale, 2023. "International trade and job polarization: Evidence at the worker level," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    8. Natkhov, Timur & Pyle, William, 2023. "Revealed in transition: The political effect of planning's legacy," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    9. Redding, Stephen, 2020. "Trade and Geography," CEPR Discussion Papers 15268, Centre for Economic Policy Research.
    10. Besedeš, Tibor & Lee, Seung Hoon & Yang, Tongyang, 2021. "Trade liberalization and gender gaps in local labor market outcomes: Dimensions of adjustment in the United States," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 183(C), pages 574-588.
    11. Bianconi, Marcelo & Esposito, Federico & Sammon, Marco, 2021. "Trade policy uncertainty and stock returns," Journal of International Money and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 119(C).
    12. Hayakawa, Kazunobu & Sudsawasd, Sasatra, 2025. "Impacts of trade diversion from China in the United States market on wages in a third country: Evidence from Thailand," International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 183(C).
    13. Serdar Ongan & Huseyin Karamelikli & Mine Aysen Doyran & Ismet Gocer & Charles A. Rarick & John Mellon, 2023. "The Bilateral USA-Mexico Trade Balances Under Decomposed Export Data," Journal of Industry, Competition and Trade, Springer, vol. 23(3), pages 171-186, December.
    14. Rotunno, Lorenzo & Roy, Sanchari & Sakakibara, Anri & Vezina, Pierre-Louis, 2023. "Trade Policy and Jobs in Vietnam: The Unintended Consequences of Trump’s Trade War," SocArXiv 9rdne, Center for Open Science.
    15. Jean‐Noël Barrot & Erik Loualiche & Matthew Plosser & Julien Sauvagnat, 2022. "Import Competition and Household Debt," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 77(6), pages 3037-3091, December.
    16. David H. Autor & David Dorn & Gordon H. Hanson, 2015. "Untangling Trade and Technology: Evidence from Local Labour Markets," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 0(584), pages 621-646, May.
    17. Deiana, C, 2016. "Local Labour Market Effects of Unemployment on Crime Induced by Trade Shocks," Economics Discussion Papers 16529, University of Essex, Department of Economics.
    18. Erhan Artuc & Irene Brambilla & Guido Porto, 2022. "Patterns of Labour Market Adjustment to Trade Shocks with Imperfect Capital Mobility," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 132(646), pages 2048-2074.
    19. Colantone, Italo & Ottaviano, Gianmarco & Stanig, Piero, 2021. "The backlash of globalization," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 113860, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    20. Choi, Jaerim & Hyun, Jay & Kim, Gueyon & Park, Ziho, 2025. "The cleanup of US manufacturing through pollution offshoring," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 154(C).

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • R00 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General - - - General
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ibn:assjnl:v:15:y:2019:i:6:p:7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Canadian Center of Science and Education (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/cepflch.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.