How NAFTA has affected the financial service industries in the United S

The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was enacted in November of 1993 with aims to facilitate the free flow of goods, services and labor between the United States, Canada and Mexico. The ratification of NAFTA created the world’s largest free market with roughly 390 million consumers and an estimated total output of $8.6 trillion. Clearly, this trade alliance has had a major influence on the financial service industries of the participating nations and will continue to do so in the future. However, the financial service provisions of NAFTA will have sufficiently greater implications for Mexico than either the United States or Canada. This is in part because Mexico is embarking upon a greater shift towards openness in its financial service industries. The fact that the financial markets of Canada and the United States have been highly integrated prior to NAFTA implies that they will not benefit as much from transactions within their own markets. What’s more, Ca nada’s trade with Mexico is 1 percent of its trade with the United States. However, the principal gains from financial integration of this sort have largely to do with the more efficient allocation of capital across international boundaries and the more efficient provision of domestic financial services to consumers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The primary gains to the United States from the NAFTA financial services agreement will be predominantly seen in the long run. The access to a market that includes 90 million people and has been served by a financial and banking sector that has been relatively inefficient and illiquid will prove to be a major advantage to the United States. Although the market access to Mexico’s financial industry has been gradual, U.S. banks, insurers and financial companies have free and fair access to Mexico. Further, in contrast to Canada, the United States has had strong historical ties with Mexico and this familiarity is expected to provide an advantage to the United States in Mexico. In the years to come, further growth of business for U.S. banks and financial institutions because of NAFTA can be expected.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A key impact of the financial services sector is that U.S. banks and financial institutions will be forced to improve their competitiveness. The McFadden Act (1927) and the Glass-Steagall Act (1933) limited branch-based banks an... ...a hemispheric bloc, although experts estimate that an expansion throughout Latin America will take much time and resources due to political maneuvering. Regardless, the implications of such an agreement will most assuredly impact the economies of all countries involved in a dramatic and unparalleled fashion. REFERENCES Crary, D, â€Å"Royal Bank of Canada and Bank of Montreal Plan Merger†, Associated Press, January 23, 1998. Chant, J, â€Å"The Financial Sector in NAFTA: A Trinational Analysis†, S. Globerman and M. Walker, 2000. Gonzalez-Hermosillo, B, â€Å"Financial Integration in North America† Paper presented at the session â€Å"Capital Mobility and Financial Integration in North America,† Allied Social Science Associations annual meetings, Boston (MA), 3-5 January 2001. Wonnacott, R.J. 2000. â€Å"The NAFTA: Fortress North America?† Commentary (C.D. Howe Institute), no. 54:1-18. White, W.R. 1999. â€Å"Some Implications of International Financial Integration for Canadian Policy† Technical Report No. 57. Ottawa: Bank of Canada. Garber, P.M. and Weisbrod, S.R., Opening the Financial Services Market in Mexico†, The Mexican-US Free Trade Agreement.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  

Informative Speech About Africa

Africa’s economy consists of the trade, industry, agriculture, and human resources. It is a resource-rich continent along with about one billion people living in 54 different countries of Africa, many African people are suffering from poverty, and I would like to continue this with how it reflects their culture as a whole. The economy and what’s available to them determines how they live and their way of their culture because their economy being undeveloped makes them poor and they have to accommodate to the poor living conditions. For example, I know African moms breastfeed their kids way past the recommended six months in American culture because there is not enough food. My name is Tony and I am here to inform you about the economy in Africa, my three main points are:ResourcesInfrastructureThe China-FactorOne of three main points is resources, forming the basis of the economies of African countries. Africa is the next biggest continent, which means huge amount of resources. It consist of oil, diamonds, gold, and silver, copper, iron, and so forth. Also includes cocoa, peanuts, and etc. The mineral industry is an important source of export earnings for many African nations and continues to be a major driver of economic growth. Along with Cacao and peanuts, Africa produces three quarters of the world's cocoa beans and about one third of its peanuts. According to a 2012 article by bono, the resource curse theory applies to Africa because such affliction of raw material put Africa under heavy pressure and tension, leading to wars and slow development because Secondly, Infrastructure is the basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function, but Africa has not kept up with demand. Power outages in the region are common while poor roads and non-existent railway system in many countries are stifling trade. The need is great like electrical power and clean water, transport networks that can boost regional trade, schooling and primary health care for all. For example, according to a 2011 article by the Voice of America, Building roads are needed here to move goods and also to ports for exports. It is crucial to the economic growth as 90% of Africa is third world countries due to the failure of their infrastructure. Lastly the China factor, Infrastructure investment has, however, increased in recent years, largely because of debt relief that put more money in government’s pockets and assistance from the Chinese. Since the early 2000’s, China role in Africa increased significantly, both in terms of trade and investment. According to a 2006 article by the policy innovations, African elites argue that the Chinese generally treat them as equals. They point out that the Chinese are investing in areas like infrastructure, the key to Africa’s future, a sector that tends to be avoided by Western aid and investment. Africans appreciate this and also note the Chinese are careful where they invest. China is Africa’s biggest trading partner and as a major financer of infrastructure projects in Africa, China lends $20 billion to African governments for infrastructure and agriculture for the next three years. In conclusion, Africa is the world’s poorest inhabited continent. However, parts of the continent have made significant gains over the last few years. In recent years, African countries consist of the fastest growing economies in the world and continue to make progress since the ending of a 27-year civil war in 2002. The future for Africa looks bright, but there’s still a lot of work to be done. So moving aside from the economy, Anthony will be speaking of politics.

The First Anti-Drug Price Gouging Law Essay - 904 Words

The first anti-drug price gouging law went into effect in Maryland on October 1, has already survived its first legal challenge, and may yet prove to be a cut-and-paste model for a nation generally pissed that drug makers are hiking the prices of medicines they need to live. â€Å"The basic fact is there are folks all over Maryland and across the country that are sick and they cannot access these life saving medicines because of the cost,† says Matthew Celentano, deputy director for policy and communications for the Maryland Citizens’ Health Initiative. Drug makers in the United States have largely abandoned treating the sick according to the Hippocratic Oath for a guiding philosophy of fuck you, pay me. The most hotly spotlighted cases are†¦show more content†¦Still, some counter that â€Å"unconscionable† is too vague to be meaningful—imagine if speed limits were as vaguely defined, argues the general counsel for a group of generic drug makers. But putting a clear price tag on what is too much, like 65 mph on the highway, might serve as an invitation to walk right up to the line of what is legal and what is unconscionable, and back it off just a little bit. â€Å"Maryland legislators tried hard here to specify with sufficient precision what kinds of price increases would be justifiable and which wouldn’t be,† says Rachel E. Sachs, an associate professor at the Washington University School of Law. â€Å"If legislators had been as specific as the generic industry wants them to be—such as by stating a specific percentage beyond which price increases would be investigated—the industry could then take price increases up to that point with impunity.† Other opponents charge that the high prices of drugs aren’t examples of price gouging at all, but necessary increases for drug makers to recoup costs of research and development. Yet a Health Affairs study shows otherwise: enough money is made by US drug companies that they could cover research and development and still save â€Å"US patients, businesses, and taxpayers approximately $40 billion† per year, if they operated like the rest of the world. In fact, we are likely underestimating how badly we are being price gouged by some drug makers—after all, a