ECONOMIC

POLICY OF
MEXICO
ECONOMIC HISTORY OF MEXICO
Mexico's economic history has been
characterized since the colonial era by resource
extraction, agriculture, and a relatively
underdeveloped industrial sector. Economic
elites in the colonial period were predominantly
Spanish born, active as transatlantic merchants
and silver mine owners and diversifying their
investments with the landed estates. The largest
sector of the population was indigenous
subsistence farmers, who lived mainly in the
center and south.
ECONOMIC POLICY OF MEXICO
Mexico is quickly becoming an emerging
market heavy-weight. In 2017, its gross domestic
product was $2.4 trillion. This was much less than its
primary trading partner, the United States, with a GDP
of $17.9 trillion, but larger than its other North
American Free Trade Agreement partner, Canada,
which had a GDP of only $1.6 trillion. Mexico's
geographic size is equivalent to Saudi Arabia. But it
supports five times as many people while exporting
one-fourth of the oil.
Mexico's 2017 GDP growth rate was 2.1 percent, about
that of the United States, but less than Canada's 3.0
percent growth. Mexico's growth has slowed since
2016, when it was 2.3 percent. Its standard of living, as
measured by GDP per capita, was $19,500. It's less
than half of its other NAFTA partners.
Mexico's Economy Depends on Exports
Mexico is the 13th largest exporter in the world. In 2017,
81 percent of its exports went to the United States. Trade with the
United States and Canada has tripled since NAFTA's signing in 1994.
More than 90 percent of Mexico's trade is under 12 free trade
agreements. Mexico has agreements with 44 countries, more than any
other nation. These trade agreements are a big reason for Mexico's
success.
Mexico manufactures and exports the same amount of goods as the rest
of Latin America combined. Foreign trade is a larger percentage of
Mexico's economy than any other large country. Mexico's No. 1 export is
manufactured products. It also exports silver, fruits, vegetables, coffee,
and cotton.
Mexico is the world's eighth largest producer of oil, at almost 3 million
barrels per day. This is less than Canada, Iran, or Iraq but more than
other big exporters such as Kuwait, Brazil, or Nigeria.
Mexico imports machinery for metalworking and agriculture. It also
imports electrical equipment, automobile and aircraft parts, and steel
mill products.
FOREIGN POLICY OF MEXICO
The foreign relations of Mexico are directed by
the President of the United Mexican States and
managed through the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs. The
principles of the foreign policy are constitutionally
recognized in the Article 89, Section 10, which include:
respect for international law and legal equality of states,
their sovereignty and independence, non-intervention in
the domestic affairs of other countries, peaceful
resolution of conflicts, and promotion of collective
security through active participation in international
organizations.[1] Since the 1930s, the Estrada
Doctrine has served as a crucial complement to these
principles.
After the War of Independence, the relations of Mexico were
focused primarily on the United States, its northern
neighbor, largest trading partner, and the most powerful actor in
hemispheric and world affairs. Once the order was reestablished,
its foreign policy was built under hemispheric prestige in
subsequent decades. Demonstrating independence from the U.S.,
Mexico supported the Cuban government since its establishment
in the early 1960s, the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua during
the late 1970s, and leftist revolutionary groups in El
Salvador during the 1980s. In the 2000s, former President Vicente
Fox adopted a new foreign policy that calls for an openness and an
acceptance of criticism from the international community and the
increase of Mexican involvement in foreign affairs, as well as a
further integration towards its northern neighbors. A greater
priority to Latin America and the Caribbean was given during the
administration of President Felipe Calderón.
Mexico is one of the founding members of
several international organizations, most notably the United
Nations, the Organization of American States,
the Organization of Ibero-American States, the OPANAL and
the Rio Group. For a long time, Mexico has been one of the
largest contributors to the United Nations regular budget, in
2008 over 40 million dollars were given to the organization. In
addition, it was the only Latin American member of
the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development since it joined in 1994 until the accession
of Chile in 2010. Mexico is considered as a newly
industrialized country, a regional power and an emerging
market, hence its presence in major economic groups such as
the G8+5 and the G-20 major economies.
COLOMBIA
 ECONOMIC HISTORY OF COLOMBIA
Colombia's economy during the colonial
era was extractive and exploitative, relying
heavily on forced native labor. Domestic industry
was constrained during the colonial period
because the audiencia was bound to Spain as
part of a mercantile system. Under this
arrangement, the colony functioned as the
source of primary materials and the consumer of
manufactured goods, a trade pattern that tended
to enrich the metropolitan power at the expense
of the colony.
ECONOMIC POLICY OF COLOMBIA
Colombia over the last decade has experienced a historic economic
boom. In 1990, Colombia was Latin America's 5th Largest economy and
had a GDP per capital of only US$1,500, by 2015 it became the 4th
largest in Latin America, and the world's 31st largest. As of 2015 the
GDP (PPP) per capita has increased to over US$14,000, and GDP (PPP)
increased from US$120 billion in 1990 to nearly US$700 billion. Poverty
levels were as high as 65% in 1990, but decreased to under 24% by
2015.
Modern industries like shipbuilding, electronics, automobile, tourism,
construction, and mining, grew dramatically during the 2000s and
2010s, however, most of Colombia's exports are still commodity-based.
Colombia is Latin America's 2nd-largest producer of domestically-made
electronics and appliances only behind Mexico. Colombia had the
fastest growing major economy in the western world in 2014, behind
only China worldwide.
Since the early 2010s, the Colombian government has
shown interest in exporting modern Colombian pop
culture to the world (which includes video games, music,
movies, TV shows, fashion, cosmetics, and food) as a way
of diversifying the economy and entirely changing the
image of Colombia; a national campaign similar to the
Korean Wave. In the Hispanic world, Colombia is only
behind Mexico in cultural exports and is already a
regional leader in cosmetic and beauty exports.
The number of tourists in Colombia grows by over 12%
every year. Colombia is projected to have over 15 million
tourists by 2023.
 FOREIGN POLICY OF COLOMBIA
Under Colombia's Constitution, the president and the rest of the executive
branch of government have almost exclusive jurisdictional responsibility for
the conduct of foreign relations. The president--charged with formulating
and executing foreign policy--clearly was the single most important player
in the late 1980s. Despite the existence of committees on foreign relations
in both houses, Congress had little role in making foreign policy.
Colombia's foreign policy has shifted frequently as a result of the
president's key role and the fact that the nation's presidents have changed
every four years. The president appoints and removes cabinet members,
chooses diplomats to represent Colombia, and receives foreign diplomats
and other representatives. In his responsibility "to direct diplomatic and
commercial relations," the president also concludes treaties and
conventions with other states, subject to the approval of Congress. The
Senate must approve declarations of war made by the president, who
controls and directs the armed forces, but he could wage a war without the
consent of the Senate if it were urgent to repel a foreign invasion.
The primary agency charged with conducting foreign relations under the
president's direction was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Within the
foreign service, two positions were almost as important as that of the
minister because of their prestige and value in furthering a political
career. One was that of ambassador to the United States, a post
considered to be one of the stepping stones to the presidency.
Presidents López Michelsen, Turbay, and Barco all served as
ambassadors to the United States. The other was that of ambassador to
the Holy See. The role of the Roman Catholic Church in the life of the
nation meant that this ambassador occupied a position of particular
prestige and some importance.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not have exclusive responsibility for
carrying out Colombia's foreign policies, however. Beginning in the
1960s, foreign policy also was influenced and developed by the Ministry
of Economic Development, the Ministry of Finance, a variety of
semiautonomous government agencies, and economic interest groups.
Of the latter, the most important probably was Fedecafe, which
maintained its own representatives in various foreign countries to
manage Colombia's coffee exports for the government.