Mexico’s Energy Regulatory Reform in the Context of a New Trilateral Agreement (NAFTA-USMCA)

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article argues that Mexico’s energy reform has allowed the country to increase trade flows among the participant countries of NAFTA-USMCA at the expense of widening its trade deficit in oil, gas, and gasoline. Actions that are currently being undertaken by Mexico’s President seem to potentially stress this deficit and are expected to weaken Mexico’s energy independence in light of the provisions of the new trilateral agreement. An analysis of convergence dynamics confirms this panorama by showing a strong relationship between Mexico’s crude oil exports to the United States, and from the latter’s exports of petroleum products to the first.