and participants of a Geneva Trade and Development Workshop for helpful comments and suggestions, and an anonymous referee for an opinion, on an earlier draft. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of UNCTAD

the Environment in the AmericasThe Working Group on Development and Environment in the Americas, founded in 2004, brings together researchers from several countries in the Americas who have carried out empirical studies of the social and environmental impacts of economic integration. The goal of the Working Group Project is to contribute empirical research and policy analysis to the ongoing policy debates on national economic development strategies and international trade. The project also brings more prominently into U.S. policy debates the rich body of research carried out by Latin American experts, as well as their informed perspectives on trade and development policies. Hosted by Tufts ’ Global Development and Environment Institute, the Working Group Project has four initiatives. The Working Group’s web page is

Since the early 1990s Latin American nations have been signing trade treaties with the United States that have brought small gains and high costs. Pending deals between the United States and Colombia and the United States and Panama are no different. Each is based on the same template that has been the cornerstone of US trade policy since the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). This paper analyses general equilibrium estimates of the gains from trade from numerous Latin American-US free trade agreements (FTAs) from the 1990s to the present, and juxtaposes such gains with the fiscal and regulatory costs associated with those treaties. It is clear that these nations are signing deals where the net benefits are ambiguous at best. Indeed, estimates show that the US-Colombia trade treaty pending in the US Congress would yield negative net welfare benefits for Colombia, cost the Colombian government $633 million in tariff revenue, and force Colombia to deregulate its financial and other sectors. The rest of the paper examines why Latin American nations would sign on to treaties that may not be in their interest. It is shown how many of the treaties signed are a result of asymmetric bargaining power between the US and a Latin American trading partner, a “race ” to gain access to the US market before their competitors do, the dominance of right-1 Kevin P. Gallagher is associate professor of international relations at Boston University and

This Dissertation Project entitled Data Driven Decision Making and the New Zealand

Program Coordinator: Prof. Fabio Pammolli, IMT Institute for Advanced

IISD contributes to sustainable development by advancing policy rec-ommendations on international trade and investment, economic policy, climate change and energy, measurement and assessment, and natural resources management, and the enabling role of communication tech-nologies in these areas. We report on international negotiations and disseminate knowledge gained through collaborative projects, resulting in more rigorous research, capacity building in developing countries, better networks spanning the North and the South, and better global connections among researchers, practitioners, citizens and policy-makers. IISD’s vision is better living for all-sustainably; its mission is to cham-pion innovation, enabling societies to live sustainably. IISD is registered as a charitable organization in Canada and has 501(c)(3) status in the United States. IISD receives core operating support from the