In the early 1990s, the proposed North American Free Trade Agreement, linking Canada, Mexico, and the United States, prompted intense debate. Today, ten years after the agreement took effect, it remains a flash point, much criticized in both Mexico and the United States. Two key complaints have been that many jobs have been lost to low-wage Mexican production and the large loss of U.S. jobs over the last decade can be attributed to the ongoing bilateral trade deficit with Mexico. Are these criticisms valid? What can be said about the success or failure of NAFTA in its tenth year?
