South America and the world

Starting in 2009, MercoNet researchers will pay special attention to the South American bloc.

Mercosur has had a complex external negotiating agenda which includes bilateral agreements with some countries from the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI, www.aladi.org) and India as well as multilateral agreements within the framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO, www.wto.org). In some cases negotiations culminated in the signing of agreements, but negotiations with more developed countries have been unsuccessful to date. Nor have the negotiations within the multilateral framework (WTO where discussions are being held on the rules for international trade in future years) been successful. The outcome of these negotiations could have a significant impact on the external insertion and the economic performance of the Mercosur countries, affecting sectors and territories differently.

MercoNet has carried out several studies on negotiations with the United States and the EU. The network has identified external negotiations scenarios; analyzed the impact of possible agreements on wellbeing, and also analyzed the effects they could have on certain sectors and on foreign direct investment