Michoacán Chapter Morelia, Mich.
Chapter president Nick Ortiz, chapter board members, private sector business executives and academics attended a luncheon hosted by Governor Silvano Aureles Conejo for Mexico’s Secretary of the Economy, Idelfoso Guajarado Villarreal.
During his visit, Guajardo made a public commitment to the governor to establish a working agenda for the importance it represents for Michoacán stating, “The state and its ports, from the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), will be a strategic focal point to new regions of the world.”
He said that the TPP is the most important commercial instrument in this century. “The 12 economies participating in the agreement represent 25 percent of global trade, more than one third of global GDP (36 percent) and account for more than one quarter (28 percent) of foreign direct investment worldwide.”
With this agreement, he added, Mexican products will have access to six markets not previously available to Mexico’s businesses as there had not been a trade agreement.
The countries Mexico will be able to trade with are: Australia, Brunei, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and Vietnam. Combined, these countries represent a market of 155 million potential consumers.
Guajardo also stressed that the TPP is part of President Enrique Peña Nieto’s strategy to diversify Mexico’s trade with the world. Mexico is already party to several trade partners including the U.S. and Canada through NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), Pacific Alliance, Free Trade Agreement with the European Union (TLCUEM) and the European Free Trade Association, as well as free trade agreements being negotiated with Turkey and Jordan.
