My government "is made up of and for businesspeople", Fox admits that there are commercial agreements that have not yielded positive results for the country

La Jornada
June 16, 2001
DPA

Panama City, June 15. In an interview given by Panama daily La Prensa, President Vicente Fox Quesada stated that, just as he had done in Japan, he would make it clear that his government "is from businesspeople, by businesspeople, for businesspeople".

The Mexican leader maintained that he will continue with his foreign tours, with the end goal of bringing investments and business into the country. "I consider myself a born promoter, and this is what I go for, to attract investments... one can't stand back and wait for all the foreign investments to fall into his lap", he says.

In the interview with the Panama newspaper, that took place in Los Pinos, his official residence, Fox Quesada said that the economic growth depends a great deal on the capacity to participate in the global market, and assures that "good things cost" and only the most aggressive win in a competitive world.

He also acknowledged the bad feeling that the signing of various commercial treaties had left, due to the fact that they hadn't yielded positive results for Mexico, and the dependence of the United States that his country has developed.

It is estimated that the total amount of direct foreign investments in Mexico will reach more than 15 thousand million dollars this year. The balance of trade between the United States and Mexico was found last year at 250 thousand million, with the settlement being favorable for the latter. Fox referred to the theme of drug trafficking and immigration in the relations with Washington. He referred to the latter phenomenon as as an opportunity:

"United States needs a workforce to sustain the growth of its economy and keep inflation low. Mexico has excellent workforce. What we want to do is legalize this situation."

In agreement with the interview published by La Prensa, the Mexican leader showed interest in the taking on negotiations again with the Panama government for an eventual signing of free trade.

Translated from Spanish by Cynthia Connell on January 16, 2001