Perceived Value of Mexican vs. US Products in Mexico, Venezuela and the United States

Abstract

With the advent of NAFTA and the liberalization of Latin American markets, Mexican firms have gained new strategic options, many of which revolve around exporting regionally or to the United States and Canada. The studies explore consumer reactions to Mexican products. The first study compares value perceptions of a cross-national sample of Mexican, US and Venezuelan respondents toward US and Mexican products. It also explores the moderating effects of product content and financial risk on value differentials. The second study, limited to Mexican and Venezuelan respondents, looks for evidence of a home country bias. While the strategy implications for Mexican products differ according to a product's level of content and financial risk, the studies indicate that inter-regional trade is a viable possibility.