Mexico
Capital:Mexico City
Population:109,955,400
GDP:$893.4 billion
GDP Growth Rate:3.2% (2008)
Mexico, once the location of the fearsome Aztec Empire, enjoys a trillion dollar free market economy. With Latin America’s second largest economy, Mexico is aptly named the “workshop of North America” due to its large manufacturing base. Seminars visit Mexico City, one of the world’s largest industrial and financial centers, or Monterrey, ranked as one of the best cities in Latin America in which to do business. Since the passage of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Mexico ships 80% of its export goods to the United States. However, Mexico also has 12 other free trade agreements with more than 40 nations including El Salvador, Guatemala, and Japan. These intimate economic relationships have shaped Mexican economic policy over the past decade and created investor-friendly markets. Improvements in the agricultural, mining and oil industries are also reducing the high unemployment and poverty rates that traditionally affect Mexico. Due to its proximity and importance to the United States economy, Mexico is an important economy for American students to know and understand.
