Competing in the world economy does not automatically boost a nation's productivity and restructure its economy. Such progress requires mobilizing capital, employment, technology and knowledge. Opportunities beyond the business realm must be fully exploited to the benfit of society as a whole....

Regional integration initiatives have long been part of the world economic landscape. In Latin America, integration flourished in the early post-war era but then lost momentum until the 1990s, when there was a new wave of initiatives ranging from free trade areas to customs unions. This Report...

Competing in the world economy does not automatically boost a nation's productivity and restructure its economy. Such progress requires mobilizing capital, employment, technology and knowledge. Opportunities beyond the business realm must be fully exploited to the benfit of society as a whole....

Regional integration initiatives have long been part of the world economic landscape. In Latin America, integration flourished in the early post-war era but then lost momentum until the 1990s, when there was a new wave of initiatives ranging from free trade areas to customs unions. This Report...

The role of regional integration agreements (RIAs) as a determinant of the location of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has become an increasingly relevant issue for emerging economies. While the concerns regarding the impact of RIAs on FDI for countries in Latin America may be related to a...

This paper analyzes whether Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) signed between the United States and Latin American countries during the last decade produced higher enforcement of labor regulations. The paper computes before-after estimates of the effect of FTAs on labor inspections and exploits...

This policy brief is intended to serve as the basis for the discussion of the Ministers of Finance on action needed to promote physical infrastructure and reduce intra-regional trade costs, in the context of the Third Meeting of the Finance Ministers of the Americas and the Caribbean held in...

Second Meeting of the Finance Ministers of the Americas and the CaribbeanAbstract: Segunda Reunión de Ministros de Hacienda de América y El Caribe

Initial research on "translatinas" show that while these Latin American firms have invested primarily in their home region, a growing number have begun to invest more heavily in the rest of the world. However, an overall evaluation of their activities and performance in new markets and detailed...

The Technical Note provides an overview of the trends in Belize's tariff structure over recent years, in particular its trade policy, commitments and obligations, the tax revenue implications, and the scope for policy implementation. Specifically, it assesses the country's level of compliance...