North American Free Trade Agreement
Ratified in 1994, NAFTA originally
created a free trade zone encompassing the United States and Canada. The
agreement later expanded to include Mexico. According to the International
Monetary Fund, total trade among the three countries increased from $306 billion
in 1993 to almost $621 billion in 2002.
Central American-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement
The United
States, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and
Nicaragua signed on to CAFTA-DR in August 2004. As of November, all but Costa
Rica have ratified the agreement. CAFTA-DR was designed to eliminate tariffs on
$15 billion worth of U.S. products exported to member countries, saving U.S.
exporters about $1 billion per year in duties.
The Enterprise for ASEAN Initiative
Announced in October 2002, the
agreement is designed to strengthen ties between the U.S. and the regional
Association of South East Asian Nations group. The goal is to create a network
of bilateral free trade agreements with ASEAN’s 10 member countries.
The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum
APEC was established as an
informal dialogue group in 1989 in response to growing interdependence among
Asia-Pacific economies. It operates on the basis of nonbinding commitments and
has no treaty obligations. It has 21 members, including Australia, Japan, Canada
and Chile.
Middle East Free Trade Initiative
Announced in 2003 by President Bush,
this initiative involves a plan of graduated steps for Middle Eastern nations to
increase trade and investment with the United States and others in the world
economy.
Free Trade Area of the Americas
This nascent initiative aims to expand
NAFTA to incorporate 34 nations in the Western Hemisphere. So far no agreement
has been reached.
The United States also has bilateral free trade agreements with Australia,
Bahrain, Chile, Israel, Jordan, Morocco, Oman and Singapore. It is negotiating
agreements with Thailand, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates and the Southern
African Customs Union, which consists of Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, South
Africa and Swaziland.
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