- Staff Writer
- Jan 10, 2014 09:41 PM EST
The "Look South" initiative announced this week by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce will seek to make U.S. products more available on the streets of Latin American cities like Mexico DF. (Photo : David Wilfong)
U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker this week announced a new initiative called "Look South" aimed at increasing business with Free Trade Agreement partners in Latin America.
"More than half of all America's FTA partners are in Latin America. These 11 economies - Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru - have a rapidly growing base of middle-class consumers and diversifying industries," the U.S.Dept. of Commerce (USDOC) says on its Web site. "The United States' FTA partners in Latin America offer a unique combination of similar language and business cultures. In addition to low or zero tariff rates on merchandise, FTAs increase transparency, improve the business environment for services and government procurement."
The USDOC also notes that Latin American economies are expected to improve in the near future.
"The International Monetary Fund forecasts that for 2014, Mexico should return to 3 percent economic growth," it says. "Among our six CAFTA-DR partner country markets, average economic growth per country of more than 3 percent is forecasted. For the remaining target markets, economic growth projections range from 4 (Colombia) to 7 (Panama) percent."
The program will utilize a combination of promotion, education and resources geared toward connecting U.S. businesses with potential partners in the targeted Latin American countries.
The U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is joining the effort as a private stakeholder in the "Look South" initiative.
"The launch of Look South is a tremendous step forward in ensuring more American businesses have access to foreign markets and are improving their bottom lines through increased sales and trade," said USHCC President & CEO Javier Palomarez according to Market Watch. "The USHCC is thrilled to support this initiative and we look forward to working closely with Secretary Pritzker and other partners as Hispanic business owners translate their historically strong entrepreneurial skills to success in the global marketplace."
"More than half of all America's FTA partners are in Latin America. These 11 economies - Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru - have a rapidly growing base of middle-class consumers and diversifying industries," the U.S.Dept. of Commerce (USDOC) says on its Web site. "The United States' FTA partners in Latin America offer a unique combination of similar language and business cultures. In addition to low or zero tariff rates on merchandise, FTAs increase transparency, improve the business environment for services and government procurement."
The USDOC also notes that Latin American economies are expected to improve in the near future.
"The International Monetary Fund forecasts that for 2014, Mexico should return to 3 percent economic growth," it says. "Among our six CAFTA-DR partner country markets, average economic growth per country of more than 3 percent is forecasted. For the remaining target markets, economic growth projections range from 4 (Colombia) to 7 (Panama) percent."
The program will utilize a combination of promotion, education and resources geared toward connecting U.S. businesses with potential partners in the targeted Latin American countries.
The U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce is joining the effort as a private stakeholder in the "Look South" initiative.
"The launch of Look South is a tremendous step forward in ensuring more American businesses have access to foreign markets and are improving their bottom lines through increased sales and trade," said USHCC President & CEO Javier Palomarez according to Market Watch. "The USHCC is thrilled to support this initiative and we look forward to working closely with Secretary Pritzker and other partners as Hispanic business owners translate their historically strong entrepreneurial skills to success in the global marketplace."
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