Suchergebnisse

Leaving the vexing & profound political questions aside, some parameters for an appropriate discussion of issues pertinent to greater North American economic integration are offered. The costs & benefits of such integration are elaborated in terms of free trade, free capital flows, free movement of workers, & regulatory harmonization. It is noted that, in light of US concerns, economic integration is clearly connected to border security integration. It is contended that the key risk for Canada is the reduction of "border risk," meaning hassle- & cost-free access to US markets. Drawbacks to Canadian-to-US regulatory & procedural harmonization are considered, suggesting that not all US regulations fit the Canadian context & noting the diversity of Canadian provincial standards as problematic. Monetary union is argued to be feasible only after it is clear that North America is on track toward a single market for goods, services, capital, & labor, & highly dependent on the similarity (or not) of the Canadian & US industrial structures. J. Zendejas

Maintains that Canadians, including the Bank of Canada, have been actively involved in international attempts to identify & deal with serious weaknesses in the foundation of the international financial architecture that were exposed by the financial crises of the late 1990s. Factors that led to financial crises in Mexico, various nations of Southeast Asia, Russia, & more recently in Argentina, are examined. Lessons learned from these financial upsets, & what has been done to minimize the risks of future crises, are explored. Special attention is given to the role played by the government of Canada & the Bank of Canada in the international effort to strengthen financial systems in emerging market economies & to improve risk management in leading industrial countries. An assessment of approaches aimed at alleviating future problems indicates that significant progress has been made in identifying the elements of a strategy to reduce incidences of future crises; however, much work still needs to be done, especially in the area of developing a framework for promoting orderly debt restructuring. J. Lindroth