Examining the North American Free Trade Agreement at 20: Foundations, Appraisal, and Future

Abstract

On January 1, 1994, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) united the economies of Canada, the United States, and Mexico, creating what has become a $19 trillion regional market with around 470 million consumers by today's standards. The distinction of NAFTA from other international pacts and trade agreements centers on its uniqueness as the first comprehensive free trade agreement, joining the economies of two developed nations to a developing one, ultimately achieving broader and deeper market inroads than any other international trade agreement before. Over the past two decades, however, NAFTA has been equally lauded and criticized. This research performs a qualitative analysis of objective formal reports and publications, as well as informal writings, to produce a work that reviews the strengths and weaknesses of NAFTA at 20 with a strong emphasis on the geographical implications of the free trade agreement, such as NAFTA's impact on the U.S. border regions with Mexico and Canada. The article concludes with an analysis of the future of NAFTA in light of new trade negotiations with the Trans-Pacific Partnership, as well as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership.