Chamber Sees Big Gains from Central American Trade

Dallas, TX – A United States Chamber of Commerce study found significant economic gains for Texas workers and the state economy from the proposed trade agreement with the Dominican Republic and Central America or DR-CAFTA.

"A trade agreement with Central America and the Dominican Republic will bring immediate benefits to Texas workers, businesses and consumers," said John Murphy, Chamber vice president for Western Hemisphere affairs. "Texas will play a significant part in helping the U.S. compete in the global marketplace."

The economic impact study, released today during an event with the Central American ambassadors, local leaders and members of the region's business community, concluded the trade agreement would increase output across all Texas industries, increase earnings of all

Texas workers, and create thousands of new jobs:

• $620 million (one year after implementation) and $4.3 billion in increased output across all industries (nine years after implementation);

• $122 million (one year after implementation) and $658 million in increased earnings of employees in all industries (nine years after implementation);

• 3,006 (one year after implementation) and 16,095 new jobs created (nine years after implementation).

Already, the Central American countries and the Dominican Republic combined form Texas' 10th largest export market, accounting for over $2 billion of exports in 2003. The agreement will level the playing field for U.S. exporters to the region, making over 80 percent of U.S. exports tariff-free on day one, open markets for U.S. service providers and create a framework of rules and regulations that will provide greater certainty for Texas companies doing business in the region.

"These countries already enjoy tariff-free access to our markets for 77 percent of their industrial goods and over 99 percent of their agricultural products," said Murphy. "It's time for us to lock-in these same benefits for our companies and workers."

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing more than three million businesses and organizations of every size, sector and region.

# # #

04-154