Context of '1993: Mexico Liberalizes Its Financial Services'

In preparation for the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), Mexico opens up its financial services to foreign ownership. By 2000, 85 percent of the banking system will be owned by foreign entities and lending to Mexican businesses will have dropped from 10 percent of the GDP to 0.3 percent. [Jones, 3/2007, pp. 3]

US President Bill Clinton signs the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which he says will “tear down trade barriers between” the US, Canada, and Mexico. [US President, 12/8/1993]

Mexico bans the planting of genetically modified crops. [Mother Jones, 7/9/2002]

Around 100,000 farm workers march to the main square of Mexico City to protest the removal of duties on farm imports that occurred just weeks earlier (see January 1, 1994). They demand that the government renegotiate NAFTA to better protect Mexican agricultural producers. [Houston Chronicle, 2/1/2003; Fanjul and Fraser, 8/2003, pp. 23 ]

In response to a suggestion by Mexico that it will put tariffs on corn to protect domestic farmers from subsidized US corn (see April 28, 2003), the Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Finance, Charles Grassley, writes a letter to Mexican officials stating: “Mexico has recently undertaken a number of actions against US agricultural products that undermine the spirit, if not the law, of NAFTA. Mexico’s continued pattern of not meeting its international trade negotiations is unacceptable.” [Fanjul and Fraser, 8/2003, pp. 23 ]

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson will later report that this evening, New Mexico’s Urban Search and Rescue Team leaves for Baton Rouge, where they will receive specific instructions on deployment. He also orders 200 members of the New Mexico National Guard to leave immediately. [New Mexico, 8/30/2005; Newsweek, 9/14/2005] New Mexico’s National Guard will be held in New Mexico, however, until they receive the required mission assignment from the Pentagon late Thursday, September 1 .