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Latin American Free Trade Association

international economic organization
Also known as: Asociación Latinoamericana de Libre Comercio, LAFTA(Show More)

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The Latin American Free Trade Association (LAFTA) was an international economic organization established in 1960 with the goal of creating a common market in Latin America. Its original members included Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay, with other countries joining later. LAFTA aimed to eliminate trade obstacles over a 12-year period, based on reciprocity and most-favoured-nation treatment, and also sought to coordinate industrialization policies.1

However, LAFTA made little progress toward a common market due to the geographic diversity and varying economic development of its member countries. In 1980, it was replaced by the Latin American Integration Association (LAIA), which adopted a more flexible approach, focusing on bilateral preference agreements rather than a strict common market timetable.21

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