This timely book examines the quiet revolution that is currently unfolding in Latin America and its likely consequences for U.S. trade and investment with and within that region. Receiving meager coverage by America's media, a virtual sea of change has taken place in Latin America during the past few years. Democratically elected leaders have labored to extricate their economies from the debt-laden stagnation of the lost decade by pursuing far-reaching stabilization and liberalization reform programs. Under President George Bush's proposed Enterprise Initiative for the Americas (EAI) and negotiations toward the formation of a North American Free Trade Area (NAFTA) with Mexico, U.S. economic policy toward Latin America is now in the midst of a dramatic revision that seeks to rectify the neglect of the past and replace it with active encouragement of economic and political change. The authors investigate the forces behind the lost decade in Latin America, the adjustment efforts that have emerged in its wake, and the enhanced potential of Latin economies as trade partners and investment outlets under the EAI and NAFTA. They look at these developments in the light of regionalizing trends afoot in the global economy at large and argue that stronger ties with Latin America are essential to the future well-being of the United States.

After outlining the emergence of global economic regionalism and its likely impact upon the United States and Latin America, the authors trace the origins of the latter's lost decade to the debt crisis of the early 1980s, the inadequacy of past international strategies to manage it, and the adoption of strenuous adjustment programs by Latin nations to deal with both debt repayment and the legacy of misguided development approaches. They show how the EAI is meant to accelerate the movement toward reliance upon free-market forces in Latin America and how the United States is likely to benefit from closer economic ties with the countries of that region. A full account of NAFTA's proposed liberalization of trade between the United States and Mexico follows, as the authors investigate its origins, examine Mexico's adjustment record, and list the gains that both nations are likely to realize under a free-trade accord. They then look at two sets of Latin economies, the first of which is formed by Chile, Venezuela, Bolivia, and Colombia and the second comprised of Brazil, Argentina, and Peru. While the former are prepared for economic integration with the United States, major problems impair the ability of the latter to become full-fledged participants in an economic pact with the United States. The analysis presented in the book should be of substantial value to businessmen, students of world affairs, as well as those with a specific interest in U.S.-Latin relations.

"Carvounis reviews the debt-servicing problems of developing countries, focusing on the experience of nine cases, mostly in Latin America. He stresses the adverse impact on the development prospects of these countries resulting from the adjustment policies that they have been required to pursue. Carvounis criticizes the current austerity-oriented approach to restoring orderly debt-servicing, maintaining that his emphasis is leading to severe economic, political, and social problems within these countries. He argues that the economic capacity and political will of borrowing countries to continue this route is dissipating." Choice

Although General Secretary GorbacheV's policy of openness has received much attention and analysis, this is among the first books to evaluate the practical meaning of perestroika for U.S. corporations. Written for executives and managers responsible for international business operations, U.S. Commercial Opportunities in the Soviet Union is a timely and highly readable examination of trade and direct investment prospects in the USSR under the present regime. The authors discuss the major critical variables--such as Soviet systemic barriers and the narrow character of planned Soviet import demand--that should influence any company's decision to do business in the Soviet Union. They explain the mechanics of dealing with the USSR, and offer the information necessary for the reader to decide the potential significance of outward-looking Soviet Union for his or her own firm.

Following an introductory overview, the book begins by addressing the micro- and macroeconomic aspects of exporting to Russia. Here the authors identify specific sectors in which American firms can greatly increase their sales to Russia, while warning that certain areas remain essentially closed to U.S. manufacturers. In subsequent chapters the authors explore opportunities for direct investment via joint enterprises with Soviet partners, demonstrating that this form of activity presents greater risks but also greater potential rewards to U.S. firms than trade. The final chapter explores the prospects for U.S. commercial interests in Russia. The authors examine the growth of Soviet external debt in terms of its possible effects on Russia as a competitor of and collaborator with American firms in third country economies. They conclude that should GorbacheV's vision of Russia as a global economic power become a reality, American firms may well face a new, potent source of low-cost competition overseas.